# LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. # 



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\ UNITED STATES OP AMERICA. J 



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Hard Hits at the WroRflf DoiiMS 



OF THE 



FAST AGE WE LIVE IN. 



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By REV. D. P. HBWTOIT, 

^<(//tor of *' Pictures of Silver,'' «' T/ie Golden Bule,*' *' Apples of 
Gold,'^ ^'Shining Light," etc., etc 



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X 



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NEW TOEK 
PUBLISHED BY M. L. BYRN, 

]S"o. 80 CEDAH STEEET. 
1874. 




JM^M^ 






Ths Library 

WASHINGTON 



Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1873, by 

MARCUS L. BYRN, 
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 



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i 



THE FLAMING SWORD. 

Fire on fire, gospel fire. The sword of the Spirit, 

quick and powerful, 

" Where'er it enters in, 

Is sharper than a two-edged sword, 
To slay the man of sin." 

Friends of truth and love, we have never felt so fully, 
deeply, heartily as now, the assurance of God's smil- 
ing favor, his entii^e approval, his spiritual guidance, 
in preparing this new volume. 

In our two previous works, " Home Thrusts" and 
" Shining Light," an oversight occurred in their prepa- 
ration. We had slight fears of being too radical, con- 
sequently holy fire was lacking, " the sword that cuts, 
the fire that bums." Then, we saw through a glass 
darkly ; but now the light shines clearly, unmistakably. 

Now we swing loose, fear not, and are getting all 
the fire we possibly can, and putting in this same gos- 
pel fire to the very utmost of our feeble ability, fire on 
fire, running the risk of losing friends or making foes, 
if so be we please Jesus — leaving the consequences of 
this fire that burns, and the sword of God's truth that 



cuts, unreservedly with Him wl.o says : " I came not 
to ^end peace on eartli, but a s v. rd." 

" I am come to send lire on the earth, and what will 
I, if it be already kindled?" — Luke, xii. 49. 

The lire is his ; the sword is his ; the glory shall be his. 

This holy fire is wanting in the ] ulpit, in the prc^ss, 
in meetings for social worship, prayer, and praise, in 
family circles, at home and abroad. We long to see 
ministers pn fire — parents and children on fire — editors 
on fire — every man, woman, and child in the Church 
on fire gospelly ; fire from Heaven, burning, blazing 
out, hotter and hotter — so hot, indeed, that no rebel 
sinner, no forjiialist, backslider, hypocrite, or tiine- 
server can live and breathe in the region or atmosphere 
of this fire pentecostal, or tongue of fire. 

What could the holy prophets have done without 
this fire — the apostles, Paul, Peter, James, and John — 
Luther, Wesley, Fletcher, Whitfield, Edwards, Baxter, 
Bunyan, Payson? It was fire on fire — fire here,, fire 
there, fire all about them, in them, and out of them. 
It was this fire on fire that kept them alive, blazing out 
— made them blazing firebrands, causing Satan to foil 
as lightning ! 

This is just the fire we wanted and sought for in 
penning this new work, " The Sword that cuts, the Five 
that burns." 

Oh for this fire on fire, this fire of love, of salvation 
— heaven-born, gospel fire — that every article in it, 
every page, every thought and word may be fire^ — fire 



on fire — blazing ont, shining brighter and brighter, 
rising higher and higher, intensified. 

We begin with fire, and keep on firing, even to the 
end, increasingly — fire first, fire midst, fire all the way. 
If the heart is on fire, the fire of God's love, the tongue 
will be fire, the pen wall be fire, fire on fire/ 

Lord, give us this fire more and more — send out this 
fire, till the whole world is on fire ! 

We are dying — dead and burned for lack of fire — the 
fire of salvation, holy fire. Oh for the breath of 
Heaven, to breathe on these dry bones ! 

The whole world is perishing for want of fire ! The 
people want fire, and will have it. Sinners hate the 
truth'; they have no heart, no desire for things holy or 
heavenly, and jet they are tired and sick of dead for- 
mality, a sickly sentimentalism, a hypocritical half- 
heartedness, a wretched, time-serving policy. Impen- 
itent sinners, wicked as the}' are, conscience-seared 
as they ara, dead in trespasses and sins, will fiock 
where fire is, true pentecostal fire — the liotter the better. 
God so ordains. Therefore, if editors and publishers 
want patronage, a rapid sale for their publications — 
tracts, books, and periodicals ; and if mini -ters wish for 
crowded houses, large audiences, and attentive hearers, 
let them get their souls on fire from above, and pour 
in this heavenly fire — scorching hot — hot as hot can be 
' — as when " the melting fire burneth," and our word 
for it, Satan, mth all his legions and hellish machina- 
tions, cannot keep these sinners from this fire, fire on 



6 

fire ! Was it not so on Pentecostal day ? — and the cry : 
*' Lord, save, we perish ? Oh, that men were wise 
and understood this ! 

" Give us the nerve of steel, 

And the arm of fearless might, 
And the strength of will that is ready still 
To battle for the right. 

" For the foeman is now abroad, 

And the earth is filled with crimes; 
Let it be om* prayer to God, 
* Oh ! give us the men for the times.' " 

Friends, will yon aid us in this work of fire — "the 
sword that cuts, the fire that burns?" 




THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 



BIBLE FIRE— THE FIRE OF THE BIBLE. 

BIBLE fire! fire! FIRE ! 

THE STYLE FORMED ON THE FIRE OP THE BIBLE THE ONLY 

TRUE STYLE. 

" One fragment of His blessed Word 
Into thy spii-Jt burned, 
Is better than the whole, half heard, 
And by thine interests turned." 

"Will searching tlie Scriptures improve your style of 
composition ? Wonderfully, wonderfully ! Nothing like 
it. It is fire ! fire ! fire ! all the way from Genesis to 
Revelation. The fire of beauty, of subhmity. The 
Psalms are full of it ; Jeremiah is full of it ; Ezekiel is 



8 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

full of it ; Daniel is full of it ; Hosea, Michah, Habak- 
kuk, Zechariah, and Malachi are full of it. '' The 
blessed Jesus spake as never man spake." Beauti- 
fully! beautifully! Every word, aU he said and did, 
are '' apples of gold in pictures of silver." Gold " seven 
times purified." Paul is full of this holy fire pente- 
costal ; Peter, James, and John — fire on fire ! Every 
thought is condensed, brought to a burning focus ! 
Header, do you wish your compositions, editorials, 
public addresses — fire on fire — fire first, midst, last, 
always ? Editors, book-makers, epistolary writers, what 
your wish? Fire, fire, fire! things beautiful, majestic, 
glorious, sparkhng, bright as the noonday sun ; full 
of fire ; pure, virtuous, heavenly ? Go to the Bible, 
the Book of books ; read it, search it, pray over it, 
meditate in it, drink into its Spirit, hide it in your 
heart, commit it to memory. Go over it and over it 
till you can say : ^' O how love I thy law ; it is my 
meditation all the day." " How sweet are thy words to 
my taste ; yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth." 

*' This precious food our heart revives : 
What strength, what nourishment it gives ! 
Oh, let us evei-more be fed 
With this divine, celestial b]'ead." 

Students, go to the Bible. Little folks and great 
folks, go to the Bible. Form your taste for reading, 
form your style for writing and speaking from the 
sacred oracles — the inspiration of Heaven — " quick and 
powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword ;" and 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 9 

every word from youi* pen and your lips will be fire, 
fire ; tell on the conscience, the heart, the life ; be a 
barbed arrow to the guilty one — in the Church or ont 
of it. Sinai's thunders will crash ! its lightnings flash ! 
Oh for this Bible fire— the fire of the Bible! The 
Lord send it. 

" Where'er it enters in, 
Is shaiper than a two-edged sword, 
To slay the man of sin." 

Search the Scriptures to form your style, your taste, 
to know how to preach, how to write. There is no 
book hke the Bible to kindle the soul, to fire it with 
holy fire. "Why is there so httle energy, life, power, 
holy boldness, heart-searching, off-hand business in 
the pulpit ? in the editorial chair ? so little of the pro- 
phetical and apostolical? — the baptismal fire and the 
tongue of fire ? Is it not measiu^ably owing to a lack 
of ' Bible knowledge, the fire of holy inspiration, the 
thunderings and lightnings of Sinai, the marrow and 
fatness of the gospel, the flint, the fire, the hammer, 
the burning lava of God's w^ord, the electrif jdng power 
issuing directly from heaven's magazine ? 

Here lies the secret of pulpit eloquence, editorial 
eloquence, eloquence that burns, flashes out, cuts like 
a razor or a two-edged sword, slays on the right and 
on the left, causes Satan to tremble, fall as lightning 
from heaven ! 



10 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 




^'AZAK^:TH 



NAZARETH, THE PLACE OF JESUS. 

*' Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth — John^ i. 46. 

Yes, salyation on salvation, glory on glory ! '' Thou 
shalt call His name Jesus ; for He shall save His peo- 
ple from their sins." Not in their sins. 

Nazareth is said to be " The city of Jesus," because 
it was the place of his usual residenpe during the first 
thirty years of his life. Matt. ii. 23 ; Litlce, i. 26 ; Matt, 
xiii. 54-58. 

From this place a light went forth, enlightening the 
whole world. " Glory to God in the highest, peace on 
earth and good-wdll to man." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 11 



CEASE FIRmG? 



Not for an instant. "We fire, keep on firing, more 
and more, so long as fire is called for — fire on fire. "We 
have only commenced our sword and fire work — it is 
on and on. 

" Agree to disagree ?" On what terms ? Agree to 
cease firing and let you go on in sin and rebellion, 
hfting the puny arm of yours in the very face of Om- 
nipotence ? Never, never. We have no agreement to 
make with stiff necks and stiff knees, save on conditions 
of repentance, humble confession, faith that works by 
love, purifies the heart ; the turning to God with full 
purpose to do his will, redeeming the time, because the 
days are evil. 

Cease fighting against God, ground your arms of 
rebellion, bow humbly and meekly at the feet of Jesus, 
we cease firing, lay aside the use of " the sword that 
cuts, the fire that burns." "Agree to disagree ?" No, 
we don't make any such agreement with the " unfruit- 
ful works of darkness, but rather reprove them." "Can 
two walk together except they be agreed?" "WThat 
fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? 
and what communion hath light with darkness ? . . . . 
What agreement hath the temple of God with idols ?" 

We make no agreement with wicked men or devils, 
so long as they continue their opposition to God and 
his cause, so long as they work wickedness, rebel 



12 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

9 

against the Most High, despise the word of his grace. 
" AVho will rise up for me against the evil-doers, or 
who will stand up for me against the workers of ini- 
quity?" saith the Lord. Agj^ee to disagree, and thus 
hold our peace? Never, never! rather let our right 
hand be severed ! What, agree to let sinners alone in 
their sins, their selfishness, their covetousness, their 
pride, their sensuahty, their time-serving and hypoc- 
risy ? — princes or menials, kings on the throne, hewers 
of wood and drawers of water, sinners in the Church 
or out of it, in the pulpit or editorial chair ? 

" To the law and the testimony — if they speak not 
according to this word, it is because there is no light 
in them." We make no compromises or agreements 
whatever to let sinners alone, — North, South, East, or 
West, at home or abroad, in high places or in low 
places. For the commandment is a lamp, and the 
law is light, and reproofs of instruction are the way 
of hfe. 

Did the holy prophets agree to disagree with sinners 
and keep silence? Did the apostles ever make any 
such agreement ? " They that forsake the law, praise 
the wicked ; but such as keep the law, contend with 
them." Did Christ, the blessed forevermore, agree to 
disagree with the Scribes, Pharisees, and hypocrites, 
those who tithed mint, anise, cummin, and omitted 
the weightier matters of the law — ^judgment, mercy, and 
faith? 

How readest thou ? 

0' 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 13 

"Agree to disagree."^ Wonderful logic, truly ! A 
stretch of charity we never dreamed of ; it covers up 
all sin, winks at every abomination, gives Satan and 
liis emissaries the whole field. Beader, are you the 
guilty one desiring this compromise, this agreement to 
disagree ? Best assured, we enter into no such agree- 
ment ; this is not Bible charity. "We shall never agree 
to let you alone or receive you to fellowship, so long as 
you persist in evil-doing, in fighting against God, per- 
secuting his little ones ; so long as you take sides with 
the enemies of truth and righteousness. Tour taking 
refuge under the garb or cloak of a Christian profession 
will not screen you from just reproof. " Thou shalt 
not hate thy brother in thy heart : thou shalt in any 
wise rebuke thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him." 
Lev, xix. 17. 

For your good, for our good, for the cause of truth 
and righteousness, to fulfil the high behest of the King 
of kings, we shall never cease to raise the warning 

^ " We must have charity, agree to disagree," said an influential 
church-member recently, while his whole influence was in the very 
face of justice, mercy, and truth. Thus it is God's word is perverted, 
misconsti-ued, or falsely interpreted, to uphold the most impudent, 
barefaced iniquity! "Wherefore, hear the word of the Lord, ye 
scornful men. . . . Because ye have said, We have made a cov- 
enant with death, and with hell we are at agreement. . . . We 
have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid our- 
selves ; therefore thus saith the Lord, . . . your covenant with 
death shall be annulled, and your agreement with hell shall not 
stand." Isaiah, xxviii. 18. 



14 THE SWOFtD THAT CUTS : 

voice, cry aloud, spare not, obey God, " warn them that 
are unruly, comfort the feeble-minded, support the 
weak, be patient toward all men." "And if any man 
obey not our word," saith ;the apostle, " note that man, 
and have no company with him, that he may be 
ashamed." " He that refuseth instruction, despiseth 
his own soul ; but he that heareth reproof, getteth im- 
derstanding." 

CHEIST'S SUFFERINGS. 

Christ bore our sins in His own body on the tree — 
the Saviour of men. What he suffered we can never 
know; but God laid on him the iniquity of us all, 
which he willingly bore to save us from eternal shame 
and misery. With his stripes we are healed. How 
great the gratitude each of us owes such a friend ! 

"Down from the shining seats above 

With joyful heart he fled, 
Entered the grave in mortal flesh, 

And dwelt among the dead. 
Oh ! for this love let rocks and hills 

Their lasting silence break; 
And all harmonious human tongues 

The Saviour's praises speak." 



" And shall his sword not burnished be ? 
Shall rust corrode the blade? 
For want of practice shall he flee, 
When Satan's host invade?" 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 



15 




IDOLATRY; OR, THE WORSHIPPmG OF IDOLS. 

Some suppose tliat the sun, moon, and stars were the 
first objects of idolatrous worship. Soon after the Flood 
idolatry prevailed extensively. Abraham's father's fam- 
ily served other gods beyond the river Euphrates, 
Laban had idols, which Kachel, his daughter, stole 
and carried awaj/. The Egyptians, though pretend- 
ing to great wisdom, worshipped bulls, snipes, leeks, 
onions, etc. The Greeks had thirty thousand gods ! 
The Chaldeans, Somans, and Chinese were not a whit 
behind. 

.The heathen had idols of all sorts — paintings, all 
varieties of sculpture, and these of many kinds of ma- 
terials, as gold, silver, brass, stone, wood, etc. At the 
present day idolatry prevails over a great portion of 



16 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

the earth, and is practised by about 600,000,000 of the 
human race. The veneration which the Papists pay to 
the Virgin Mary and other saints and angels, the 
adoration paid to the bread in the sacrament, the cross, 
crucifixes, relics, and images, is nothing more nor less 
than idol-worship. 

Idolatry was never more prevalent than at the pres- 
ent day. Covetousness is idolatry ; the placing our 
affections unduly on any earthly object, the excessive 
attachment or veneration for anything, is idolatry. 
Whoever loves this world, or the pursuits of wealth, or 
honor, or ambition, or selfishness in any form, and for 
these forgets or neglects God and Christ, such a one 
is an idolater. "We may worship our houses, furniture, 
or wardrobes. Husbands may worship their wives, 
wives their husbands, parents their children. " Thou 
shalt have no other gods before me." 

To idolize is to love to excess gold, wealth, equi- 
page, costume, etc. One of the most fearful, prevalent, 
alarming evils of our day is idolatry in dress, conform- 
ing to the world in gaj, costly, and fashionable adorn- 
ments. Novel-reading and idolatry in dress go hand 
in hand ; they aid and stimulate each other. 

And can these idolaters hope to escape the awful 
condemnation ? 

Idolaters are classed with " dogs, and sorcerers, and 
whoremongers, and whosoever loveth and maketh a 
lie." Bev. xxii. 15. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 17 

WAITING FOR A CALL, ARE YOU? 

HOW LON'G ARE YOU GOING TO WAIT? 

" Why stand ye here all the day idleV — Matt. xx. 6. 

* 

" Why do you idle stand ? 

There is something for all to do ; 
Look forth on the wants of our teeming land — 
The sorrow and sin on eveiy hand ; 

Say, is there no work for you ? 
There is work in the crowded street; 

There is work in the silent cell; 
'Mid the noisiest hum and the busiest feet; 
In halls where thronging multitudes meet, 

In the hovel where outcasts dwell." 

A Stand-still Fire, or Do-nothing Holiness. Can 
such a thing be ? Here is a professed minister of the 
Gospel waiting for a call to some parish, some opening 
for ministerial labor. Some fonr or five years since, 
this same pulpit orator inquired of us for a vacant pul- 
pit, where he could hold forth the word of life ; and 
here he is still waiting, while fields are white for the 
harvest in every dii'ection. 

Multitudes on every side are perishing for lack of 
spiritual food. Thousands on thousands are rushing 
on to woe eternal before the eyes of this ministerial 
brother — and yet no opening for labor in God's vine- 
yard. He is still waiting for a call, when all heaven 
and earth ring peal on peal with lightnings'y?a^A and 
thunders' crash ! " Why stand ye here oil the day idle T' 
" Go loork in my vineyard^ 



18 THE SWOED THAT CUTS : 

HoAv many afflicted ones, sick, destitute, oppressed, 
call for sympathy ! how many broken hearts need 
binding up ! and yet this same man, called of God to 
minister in holy things, sits with folded hands v/ait- 
ing for a pubhc call ! Eeader, is this gospel ? Jesus 
Christ ? Paulj the apostle ? Did Job wait for a call to 
do good, or fear to run before he was sent, when he 
was eyes to the blind, and feet to the lame, and a 
father to the poor ; when the blessing of him that was 
ready to perish came upon him ? If this same waiting 
minister was on Jire, baptized with the Holy Spirit, 
tooidd he sit still? Could he sit still, when the cry on 
every breeze is, " Come over and help us ?" Did Paul, 
when his eyes were opened, wait, fold his hands, take 
the easy-chair some four, six, or eight years, looking out 
for a fat salary, a rich parsonage with a luxurious table 
and costly furniture ? 

How with the Reformers, where the Gospel flame 
was kindled in their souls — Luther, Wesley, "Whitfield, 
Baxter, Bunyan — did they wait for a call, or were they 
fearful of running before they were sent ? 

" Where begin ?" Begin at Jerusalem ; begin where 
the one hundred and twenty began, in the upper room ; 
begin with the tongue of Jlre. The early disciples, 
when full of faith and the Holy Spirit, went everywhere 
preaching the word, declaring what great things God 
had done for their souls. They were led by the Spirit 
of God, his word, his providence. The very stones 
would have cried out had they held their peace. The 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 19 

love of God constrained them. They were full of mat- 
ter ; Hke new wine, that must have vent — " ready to 
burst, hke new bottles." Job, xxxii. 19. 

Wherever they went the holy flame caught, sinners 
were pricked to the heart, cried out, " Lord, save ; we 
perish !" Saints were sanctified, built up in their most 
holy faith — salvation streamed! Satan fell as light- 
ning ! 

Wait for a call? What call? The burning call was 
in their inmost souls — fire on fire, " the sword that 
cuts, the fire that bums." Wait for an audience, a 
cushioned pulpit, a splendid temple, a fashionable 
choir, a high-sounding organ? Ko sooner did they 
cross the threshold than a missionary field was before 
them. They opened their mouths wide, and God filled 
them. They were instant in season, out of season, to 
warn one sinner, two, three, or more. Wherever a soul 
was found out of Christ, there was an audience. They 
flew on wings of love. Did Christ wait for a large 
audience at the well of Samaria? Behold the wo- 
man that came to draw water, who, through the 
preaching of the Lord Jesus, received the water of 
eternal life, whereof if a man drink he shall thirst 
no more forever! And when this woman's soul was 
touched with the finger of Divine love, did she fold her 
hands, wait for a call or an audience ? Nay, she went 
on preaching (forgetting her water-pot), " Is not this 
the Christ?" till the whole city was in a flame — on fire ! 
" Behold how gTeat a matter a Uttle fire kindleth." 



20 THE SWOKD THAT CUTS : 

Waiting are you, friend, for a call? Hoav long? 
Till doomsday ? — the sound of the last trumpet ? Out, 
outj turn out, wake up, stir about ! Go to work ! 

*' Live for something ; be not idle, 
Look about tliee for employ ; 
Sit not down to useless dreaming; — 
Labor is tbe sweetest joy." 

Out, search out. Out into lanes, alleys, by-ways, 
and highways : up into garrets, down into cellars, in 
dens of poverty, misery, distress, desolation, and deg- 
radation. Search out the poor, the sick, the afflicted, 
the oppressed, the halt, the blind, the lame — ^pour in 
the oil and wine of consolation, bind up the broken- 
hearted, support the weak, heal the sick, cleanse the 
lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils. " Freely ye 
have received, freely give." " The poor ye have always 
with you, and whensoever ye will, ye may do them 
good." 

Imitate Christ and his apostles in acts of mercy, 
justice, and truth ; pull sinners out of the fires of hell. 

Awake, thou sleeper, atvaJce ! arise from the dead, 
and " Christ shall give thee light." Go to work. 

" No matter wbere, if duty calls thee, go 

Amid contagion, poverty, and death : 
Bend o'er the sufferer in his hour of woe, 

Nor fear the blast of pestilential breath. 
Do, suffer, die, at duty's call divine, 

Nor rest from battle till the victory's won ; 
Then, Soldier of the Cross, a crown is tliine — 

Thou faithful servant, hear thy glad ' well done.' " 



THE FIRE THAT BUENS. 



21 




SIDON. 

SiDON is one of tlie most ancient cities in tlie world. 
Gen, xlix. 13. Man;/ of the Sidonians became follow- 
ers of Jesus. 3Iar]c, iii. 8. Many of them resorted to 
him iQ Gahlee. L^lke, vi. 17. Paul visited Sidon on 
his voyage to Eome. Acts, xxvii. 3. Our Saviour re- 
fers to both Tyre and Sidon in reproaching the Jews, 
who were more highly favored. Matt. xi. 21, 22. " Woe 
unto thee, Chorazin ! woe unto thee, Bethsaida ! for 
if the mighty works which were done in you had been 
done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented 
long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say unto you, 
it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the 
day of judgment, than for you." 

How fearfully applicable to our city. State, and na- 
tion ! " Where much is given, much is required." 



22 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

THE FIRE GOING OUT, GONE OUT! 

OR, 
DEAD CAPITAL IN OUR CHURCHES. 

"There's words and there's pens to be wielded, 
There's thoughts that must die if unsaid ; 
Wouldst thou saunter and pine among roses, 
Or sepulchre dreams that are dead?" 

"Who can estimate the vast amount of dead capital, 
the unsanctified talent in all our churches ? 

From every point of observation we see slumbering 
energies, buried talents, forcing conviction on the mind 
that the great mass of professing Christians are at ease 
in Zion. 

Hundreds and thousands have never put forth one 
single earnest effort to persuade men to become recon- 
ciled to God. They are waiting for the Church to do 
the work that they are required individually to do ; 
and under the delusion that the Church has duties 
separate from those of her individual members, msmy 
excuse themselves from all personal labor. 

This is a fundamental error of the age, a practical 
heresy of the most pernicious and deadly influence ! 
The Church was never designed to absorb, so as to 
neutralize the personal element, and to render it more 
effective — that every energy, and influence, and power 
might tell in the great work of saving souls. And 
yet the dead capital in every church is very great. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 23 

Eeader, take your own church ; what is the compara- 
tive amount of available capital — the number of ac- 
tive, working Christians who seem deeply and earn- 
estly interested in advancing the spiritual interest of 
the Church ? What are they doing ? What are you 
doing? Has God given you talents, energy, and 
means, which lie as dead capital ? Tou must give ac- 
count of all you have. "It is required in stewards 
that a man be found faithful." By-and-by it will be 
said to thee, '' Give an account of thy stewardship." 
What saith the Lord to the unfaithful servant who hid 
his talent in the earth ? " Take, therefore, the talent 
from him, and give it unto him that hath ten talents : 
For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he 
shall have abundance ; but from him that hath not, 
shall be taken away even that which he hath : And cast 
ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness ; there 
shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Matt xxv. 
28, 29. What— 

"]N'o tiling to do? hast thou no store of gold? 

No wealth of time, that thou shouldst well employ ? 
No hidden talent that thou shouldst unfold? 
JSTo gift that thou shouldst use for others' joy?" 

This unavailable capital, this unsanctified talent, 
these dead-weights are in nearly all our churches, 
especially in large cities. To be a member of some 
denominational church is popular, often lucrative. 
Wealthy merchants, lawyers, doctors, ministers, ed- 
itors, professors in colleges and seminaries, men of 



24 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

giant intellect are on the clmrcli-book, surround the 
communion-table, partake of the dying emblems of a 
crucified Jesus, and still are mere nominals — unsancti- 
fied ; they go and come, come and go, like a door on 
its hinges ! Take one church in New York city, by 
way of illustration, on which our mind's eye is now 
fixed. 

Look at it ; here are men of science, learning, talent, 
men of towering intellects, medical men, ministers on 
the shelf, law expositors, students preparing for the 
ministry, writers for the press — but what are they? 
Where are they in things spiritual, heavenly, and di- 
vine, in consecratedness to God's service? They are 
dwarfs, pigmies in holy things, skeletons, with scarcely 
a single breath of the sanctified or baptismal grace. 
Instead of entering the holy of holies, they are groping 
about in the outer court.^ 

Suppose these giant minds were w^hoUy sanctified, 
set apart exclusively for soul-saving, on God's altar, 
continually, unreservedly — full of faith and the Holy 
Spirit, like Barnabas — would not salvation stream, the 
heavens rend, mountains flow down, as when the melt- 
ing fire burneth? Our whole city would be shaken 

"^ In most of our modern churches, especially the more fashionable 
ones, about three-fourths of the members are honorary members. 
Tliey seem to have no voice in any of the proceedings. They don't 
attend prayer-meeting or Sabbath-school, and feel under no obliga- 
tions to be present at any religious service, except on fair days, and 
then as mere spectators. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 25 

to its foundations ; tlie Holy Spirit would be poured 
out overflowingly ; sinners by thousands would cry out, 
" Lord, save ; we perish !" All heaven would ring hal- 
lelujahs ! This unsanctified talent in the house of God, 
instead of being a blessing to the Church and the 
world, is a curse. Church-members, having a name to 
live, while dead, destitute of the purifying, sanctifying 
influence of the Holy Spirit^ stand in the way of a re- 
vival, are stumbling-blocks, hindrances, clogs to the 
wheels of salvation, Achans in the camp ! They nei- 
ther enter the Kingdom themselves, nor suffer those to 
enter that would enter ! 

" Salt is good ; but if the salt have lost its savor, 
wherewith shall it be seasoned?" 

" Prophesy upon these bones ; say to the wind, thus 
saith the Lord God: Gome from the four vdnds, O 
breath! and breathe upon these slain, that they may 
Kve. O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord." 
Ezeh xxxvii. 

"Wake, Christian ! bring thy cheerful toil, 
Bring of thy treasured gold ; 
Offer thy praises and thy prayers, 
In view of love untold. 

"Hark! from amid the blended tones 
That break upon the ear, 
Are those of earnest, toiling ones, 
Fainting of aid and cheer. 

" And louder far than all besides 
The Master's voice is heard, 
Bidding thee labor for the lost, 
By love and pity stirred," 

2 



26 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 



CLEAR THE TRACK I CLEAR IT! CLEAR IT 

" Cry aloud, ye sons of men, 

Like a trumpet, lift your voice, 
To my people show their sin, 
And the guilt of Jacobus house." 

" By whom shall Jacob arise ?" " Who will rise Tip 
for me against the evil-doers ? or who will stand up for 
me against the workers of iniquity ?" Char the track, 
clear it ! 

Out, out ! If you will not labor yourself, when fields 
are white for harvesting, put your shoulder to the 
wheel ; do not, we beseech you, block up the way, hin- 
der others from workmg that will work and are work- 
ing. What ! be a drone in the hive, in society ? Go 
to work, strip to it, else out of the way, clear the track, 
clear it, quick, make Jiaste ! Oh, mortal, make haste ! 
Do what good thy hand findeth to do, with thy might. 
Make haste ere your glass is run, ere the silver cord is 
loosed, or the golden bow4 broken ; ere the gate of 
mercy is closed forever. 

" Make haste, man, to do 
Whatever must be done; 
Thou hast no time to lose in sloth, " 
Thy day will soon be gone: 
Make haste, O man, to live." 

Go to work, else out of the way ! Why hinder oth- 
ers, block the wheels of salvation? If you will not 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 27 

speak out yourself, raise the warning voice — cry aloud 
against popular evils, sin in high places, national sins, 
church sins, sins in Missionary Boards, Tract, Bible, 
and Sunday-school societies, sins of ministers and peo- 
ple, editors, Presbyteries, and General Conferences — 
off, clear the track! move off! If you are determined 
to hold your peace, and let iniquity, high-handed, 
stalk in open day, we entreat you not to close the lips 
of others. Get out of the way ! clear the track, and 
let the car of salvation and emancipation roll on and 
on, till the " kingdoms of this world become the king- 
doms of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." There 
is a fearful curse denounced against those who come 
not up to the help of the Lord against the mighty. 
(See Judges, v. 23.) " Woe !" said our Saviour, " to those 
who shut the Kingdom of Heaven against men, who 
neither go in themselves, neither suffer them that are 
entering to go in." Out of the way, ye time-servers 
and popularity-seekers ; " clear the track," lest the car 
of reform and salvation ride over you and crush you to 
atoms. Out, out ! Move off, clear the track ! 

" The soul that scorns the mandate, dies, 

And meets a fiery day; 
No more the sovereign eye of God, 

Overlooks the ciimes of men : 
His heralds now are sent abroad, 

To warn the world of sin." 

Clear the track ! 



28 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS 




EDINBURGH. 



EDINBURGH, AND KNOX, THE REFORMER. 

" Fear not them that kill the hody.^^ 

When we look at Edinburgh, or any part of Scot- 
land, we are reminded of John Knox, the glorious re- 
former, who, with power from on high, shook Church 
and State, kings and queens — made them tremble! 
They feared his prayers more than bombshells or forty- 
pounders. 

Knox was known and beloved by the principal per- 
sons among the reformed in France, Switzerland, and 
Germany. He was the light of Scotland, the mirror of 
godliness, and pattern and example to all true minis- 
ters, in purity of life, soundness of doctrine, and bold- 



THE riRE THAT BURNS. 29 

ness in reproving wickedness. He cared not for the 
frown nor for the favor of men in the path of duty, 
how great soever they might be. 

The regent of Scotland, on one occasion, pointing to 
his grave, said : "There hes one who never feared the 
face of many Glorious! 

What made this blessed man of God, this true Bible 
reformer, what he was ? Fire ? Yes, gospel fire— his 
whole soul was on fire pentecostally. He conferred 
not with flesh and blood. 

Oh for such men on Zion's top— blazing firebrands of 
truth, storming the fort of Satan, causing him to fall as 
lightning ! 

"What I tell you in darkness, f^af speak ye in light : 
and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the 
house-tops. And fear not them which kill the body, but 
are not able to kill the soul : but rather fear him which 
is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Matt. 
X. 27, 28. 

" God sends some teachers unto eveiy age, 

To eveiy clime, and every race of men, 

Witli revelations fitted to their growth 

And shape of mind, nor gives the realm of Tmth 

Into the selfish rule of the whole race ; 

Therefore each form of worship that has swayed 

The life of man, and given it to grasp 

The master-key of knowledge — reverence. 

Enfolds some gems of goodness and of right, 

Else never hath the eager soul, which loathes 

The slothful down of pampered ignorance, 

Found in it even a moment's fitful rest'* 



80 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 



REPROOF. 



"Eeproye, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering 
and doctrine." 2 Tim, iv. 2. 

" Let the righteous smite me ; it shall be a kindness : 
and let him reprove me ; it shall be an excellent oil, 
that shall not break my head." Ps. cxU. 5. • 

" Speak thou the truth : let others flmch, 
And trim their words for pay." 

" Them that sin openly, rebuke openly, that others 
may fear." " Thou shalt in anywise rebuke thy neigh- 
bor, and not suffer sin upon him." 

" I am not come to send peace on earth," saith the 
Lord, " but a sword." 3Iatt x. 34. 

ReproYe sin ? Surely ; reprove it, rebuke it, " Cry 
aloud, spare not, hft up thy voice hke a trumpet." 

Says Paul to Timothy : " I charge thee, therefore, 
before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge 
the quick and the dead at his appearing and his king- 
dom : Preach the word ; be instant in season, out of 
season ; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering 
and doctrine. For the time will come when they will 
not endure sound doctrine ; but after their ow^n lusts 
shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching 
ears ; and they shall turn away their ears from the 
truth, and shall be turned unto fables." 2 Tim, iv. 1-4. 

Christian admonition or reproof is a positive com- 
mand. Neglect to obey God in this precept without 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 31 

sin ? No more than we can cease to love God with all 
our hearts, and our neighbors as ourselves, without sin. 

It is an every-day business. " Exhort one another 
daily y 

An individual, Hving in the neglect of this duty from 
day to day, is as certainly living in the practice of 
known sin, as he who is in the constant commission of 
theft, robbery, or murder ! And yet, how frequently 
is this positive precept violated by parents, teachers, 
editors, and ministers of the gospel, and by many, we 
fear, professing holiness, entire sanctification, or perfect 
love. 

" Am I my brother's keeper ?" Certainly you are, 
friend ; and his blood will be required at your hands, 
if so be you warn him not when danger is near, suflfer 
sin to rest upon him. You are chargeable with his 
death ! 

" Son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the 
house of Israel ; therefore thou shalt hear the word at 
my m0uth, and warn them from me. When I say unto 
the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die ; if 
thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, 
that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood 
will I require at thy hand." Ezek. xxxiii. 7. 

Love to God plainly requires us to discharge this 
solemn duty — ^love to our neighbor, to the community, 
to the world. 

It is cruel to omit it. Is your neighbor's house on 
fire, the inmates slumbering ? What now ? Cry, " Fire, 



82 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

fire, fire ! escape for your life /" What is this house- 
hold fire compared to the fires of hell, eternal damna- 
tion? The neglect of this duty is rebellion against 
God, high-handed. 

Tour silence gives consent, encourages sin ; and thus 
your neighbor's sin becomes your sin. You are par- 
taker of his eyil deeds I 

Again, your own salvation or damnation turns on the 
pivot of faithfulness or unfaithfulness, of obedience or 
disobedience to the command under consideration. It 
is utterly impossible to keep a conscience void of of- 
fence, grow in grace, while omitting the duty of reproof. 
No man keeps the law of God, or keeps his conscience 
clear, who sees sin and does not reprove it. 

Keproof should be always in the name of the Lord, 
in the spirit of meekness, and at the same time with 
holy boldness. 

There are various ways of administering reproof — ^by 
the distribution of books, tracts, and religious period- 
icals,^ by corresponding, by the living voice, ancJ^ above 
all, by a godly walk and conversation, an example of 



* So do we, the Lord helping. Tracts of the right kind, full of holy 
fire, will preach to sinners in the church and out of it, thunder and 
lighten, impart light and life, preach when no audible voice is heard, 
in the house and out of it, by the wayside, at the merchant's desk, 
in the stage-coach, the steamboat, the rail-car, the closet, the domes- 
tic circle : they preach and keep preaching, when we sleep and 
when we wake. They hesitate not to declare the whole truth, 
boldly, uncompromisingly. Many pulpits fail to do this. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 33 

whatsoever is true, honest, just, lovely, and of good 
report. 

Without this walking uprightly, working righteous- 
ness, and speaking truth from the heart, our reproofs 
wiU be but a sounding brass or tinkling cymbal. 

"Physician, heal thyself," will ring in pur ears. 
" Thou, therefore, that teachest another, teachest thou 
not thyseK ? Thou that preachest a man should not 
steal, dost thou steal ?'' Bom. ii. 21. 

Where does the Bible spare offenders- — great heads 
or little heads? Call names? To be sure it does — 
speaks out, thunders ! No matter who it is that sins 
openly, barefacedly — kings or menials, princes or the 
man on the dunghill— his name is called out, that all 
heaven and all hell may hear. Take every instance of 
open transgression and pubKc outlawry, from Genesis to 
Revelation, and is there any covering up of the offence, 
the guilt, or the criminality ; anything like daubing 
with untempered mortar, or prophesying smoothly? 
God speaks once, twice, three times— that all may see, 
all may hear, all may fear. These are Bible facts, 
placed on record for examples. Why should we be 
mealy-mouthed, hush iniquity, and cover sin in high 
places and in low? The prophets called things by 
their right names, and so did the apostles Paul, Peter, 
James, and John. 

" Smite a scomer, and the simple will beware : and 
reprove one that hath understanding, and he will imder- 
stand knowledge." Prov, vi. 23. 



34 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS 




PAKIS. 



PARIS, THE CITY OF FASHION ! 

" Lovers of pleasures more than lovers of GodP 

" Love not the world, neither the things that are in 
the world. If any man love the world, the love of the 
Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the 
lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride 
of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world." 1 Johfi^ 
ii. 15, 16. 

A visitor at the recent Exhibition in Paris, speaks 
thus : " The beautiful collections of statuary and pic- 
tures by the best masters are worthy of note ; but I 
fancy our old grandmothers would have blushed as they 
gazed on those representatives of their sex, in the fash- 
ionable attire of the French schools — that is, without 
any wrappings or trappings whatever. I imagine a 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 36 

heatten Kaffir, such as we saw in South Africa, would 
fail to see the propriety of such naked beauty. 

" I need not moralize on French taste or French 
morals. But what do you think of a National organ- 
ized system of licentiousness, which has its quarters 
* located, and designated, and Hcensed by government, 
and Inspectors ! appointed by law ?' 

" Sabbath is not recognized in Paris, only by the 
few, who are scarcely to be noticed among the masses." 

From this sink-hole of moral pollution and hotbed 
of lewdness spring the fashions. Hence flow the height 
of extravagance and gayety, the changeable suits of ap- 
parel, the mantles, wimples, and crisping-pins, spark- 
ling gems and costly array that dazzle the ballroom, 
the theatre, opera-house. What next ? ** The way to 
hell, going down to the chambers of death." Frov. 
vii. 27. 

Paris revels at night, and does not retire till long 
past the small hours ; and it is only at high noon that 
she wakes from her slumber to begin the eternal round 
of pleasure and excitement. There is no parallel to 
Paris on the globe. She is an extended playhouse or 
extravagant picnic, organized for a temporary purpose. 
The French people are governed through their appe- 
tites, and he who aspires to rule them must con- 
sistently cultivate their tastes for personal enjoyment. 
Hence pleasure here is a permanent institution. 



36 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



THUNDER IT? YES, THUNDER ITl 

Thunder it, thunder it, thunder it ! Keep on thun- 
dering it, louder and still louder ; cease not day nor 
night — make heaven's arches ring from pole to pole. 

Individuals are dying, whole families are dying, 
churches and communities are dying, the world is dy- 
ing, dead, and damned for want of thunder on thunder, 
Sinai's crash, the lightning's flash I " The sword that 
cuts, the fire that bums." 

Eun with your censers, run, stay the plague. Who 
says so ? God, the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, 
Every one with soul on fire pentecostally, cries : 
** Thunder, thunder ! flash, flash ! the truth, the whole 
truth, bring it home to every heart, thunderingly, fiash- 
ingly ! soul-kindlingly to every sinner out of Christ, on 
the way to hell 1 Convert them ! BUnd leaders of the 
blind, backshders, formaUsts !" How? 

Awake dead folks without thunder, louder than seven 
thunders, louder and still louder? When? Where? 
Friends beloved, it is thunder we want, must have, all 
about. Thunder, begin now, keep on and on thun- 
dering! 

O ye stiff-necked in the pulpit, how long ere ye begin 
to thunder, thunder, thunder ? 

There was a time when it thundered mightily ! The 
clouds gathered blackness, thunders rolled, crashed, 
the lightnings ^a^/i^c? ! Elijah thundered ; Elisha thun* 



THE FIBE THAT BURNS. 37 

dered ! Isaiah thundered ! Jeremiah thundered ! Eze- 
kiel thundered ! Daniel thundered ! Nehemiah thun- 
dered ! John the Baptist was a son of thunder ! John 
Kjiox was a son of thunder ! Luther thundered ! Wes- 
ley thundered ! Whitfield thundered ! Praise the Lord 
for thunderers. 

Where now the thunderers ? Oh, where ? Where 
" the sword that cuts, the fiire that burns ?" Lord, for 
mercy's sake send the thunderers, ere hell-fire wake 
us up ! 



A CROWN! A CROWISr! 

Talk about a crown ; what kind of a crown will yours 
be ? sparkling full of diamonds ? *' They that turn 
many to righteousness shall shine as the stars forever 
and ever." Dan. xii. 3. A crown : whoever obtained 
a crown without fighting for it ? Peter, James, or 
John ? Did Paul ? Man, woman, child, what are you ? 
on the wing ? Flying, flying ! flying ! fighting, ^^i- 
ing I flghting! Obtain a crown, and sit still, take the 
easy-chair, fold your hands ? " Must I be carried to 
the skies on flowery beds of ease ?" 

" Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, 
but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may 
obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery 
is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a 
corruptible crown ; but we an incorruptible." 1 Cor. 
ix. 25, 26. 



38 THE SWOBD THAT CUTS 



"FIERY, ARE YOU? CENSORIOUS, BLAZINGLY?" 

Yes, beloved, we are fiery, and expect to be more 
and more fiery from page to page, as we see sin pre- 
vailing. The more iniquity abounds in high places 
and in low, the more intensely fiery or censorious we 
intend to be — cry louder and louder, strike harder and 
stiU harder, whether by pen or the living voice, in the 
pulpit or out of it, at home or abroad, by the wayside, 
up stairs or down stairs, by sea or by land — it shall be 
fire, fire, fire ! Woe be to us if we do it not ! The 
very stones in the streets would cry out ; the heavens 
would gather blackness ; the thunders would crash 1 
the hghtnings^a^A / What is censoriousness, or gospel- 
fire ? Severity ? condemnation ? blaming this, blaming 
that? blazing here, blazing there? thundering here, 
thundering there? rising up against evil-doers here, 
evil-doers there ? Who, in his right mind, with a spark 
of grace in his heart, does not condemn sin, fight 
against it, declaim against it, vehemently, unsparingly 
— slay the monster, crush the serpent's head, the curse 
of all curses ; that Avhich makes devils, spirits damned ; 
that opens wide the scorching, ever-burning flames of 
fierce damnation ! 

Who is more determinately and everlastingly censo- 
rious against all sin — sins of omission and commission, 
of thought, word, and deed, the sins of the flesh and of 
the spirit — than the Almighty, the King of kings and 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 39 

Lord of lords? The Bible, from Genesis to Revela- 
tion, is full of fire — redhot, censoriously — against every 
species of out-breaking, God-defying iniquity, burning 
hotter and hotter to the lowest hell ! 

Who was ever more censorious than the blessed 
Lord, the meek and lowly Jesus ? 

The very heavens rent, mountains on mountains 
flowed down, as when " the melting fire bumeth" — fire 
on fire! "Ye serpents! ye generation of vipers, how 
can ye escape the damnation of hell !'' John the Bap- 
tist thundered and thundered. So did Paul, Peter, 
James, and John. 

Hell-fire blazed out and out on every side. The old 
prophets, EKjah, EKsha, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and 
Daniel were not a whit behind. Censoriousness was 
their daily food, their meat, and their drink. 

Live and breathe without it ? Not a breath. Life 
or death, death or life was involved. Follow we in the 
same steps ? Unquestionably, to the very utmost of our 
feeble ability — ^load and fire, load and fire ! 

" Oh, for tlue living flame, 

From His own altar brought. 
To touch our lips, om* souls inspire, 
And wing to Heaven our thought!" 

Nothing but hell-fire blazing in the face and eyes 
will arouse dead folks, in the Church and out of it, es- 
pecially formalists, dead, dead, twice dead, plucked up 
by the roots ! 

" In love ?" Certainly, by all means — the more love, 



40 THE SWORD THAT CUTS I 

the more fire ; the more love, the more resolutely we 
fight against sin. It is love kindles fire, and fire kin- 
dles love — fire on fire ! Without love no holy fire, no 
true Bible reform or censoriousness. The Lord give 
us more of it, a thousand fold ! 

" Oh ! for this love let rocks and hills 
Their lasting silence break; 
And all haimonions human tongues 
The Saviour's praises speak." 



FASHIONABLE IDOLATRY. 



There are many now that have followed the world 
and followed the fashions, till God seems to have given 
them over to the devil for the destruction of the flesh. 
They have little or no religious feeling, no spirit of 
prayer, no zeal for the glory of God or the conversion 
of sinners ; the Holy Spirit seems to have withdrawn 
from them. 

Where the principal members, the elders arid leaders 
in the church, and their wives and families, are fashion- 
able Christians, they drag the whole church along with 
them into the train of fashion, and every one apes 
them as far as they can, down to the lowest servant. 
Only /let a rich Christian lady come out to the house of 
God in full fashion, and the whole church are set agog 
to follow as far as they can, and it is a chance if they 
do not run in debt to do it. Literally closing the door 
of the sanctuary against the poor ! 



THE FIEE THAT BUBNS. 



41 




STOCKHOLM. 



STOCKHOLM— SERVICES AT A CHAPEL. 



FIRES KINDLING HERE, KINDLING THERE. 

A RECENT visitor at Stockholm speaks thus of these 
fires : • 

" The Eev. Mr. Broady took his text and commenced 
his discourse. * For whosoever shall be ashamed of 
me and my words, of him shall the Son of man be 
ashamed when he shall come in his glory, and his 
Father's, and of the holy angels.' He stood out on 
the platform, his entire person visible to the auditory, 
held the Bible in his left hand, and presenting the ap- 
pearance of one self-possessed, and having all his 
powers at command. His manner was easy, his ut- 
terance deliberate .; he made free use of the Scriptures, 



42 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

turning to different passages, expounding them, and so 
fortifying his main position. The foundation laid with 
ease, he went up with the structure, warming as he 
proceeded, till, towards the close, all the powers of his 
mind and heart went into his work ! The whole was a 
plain, simple, direct, and pointed presentation of truth. 
His sentences were short, pointed directly at his hear- 
ers ; they entered into the mind and ^jeart. From the 
very beginning every face was toward him, every eye 
upon him, every one seemed eager to catch all the 
words. After the middle of the sermon all were ab- 
sorbed, many faces absolutely glowed with delight, 
while many more betrayed anxiety. All was simple 
and earnest, without ostentation or the least effort to 
produce a sensation. And yet an absorbing interest 
pervaded the mass ; and when the question was at 
length asked, whether any desired salvation and wished 
for special prayer on their behalf, from thirty to fifty, 
in different directions, lifted their hands in token of 
such a wish. My heart was moved to its very depths 
by what my eyes saw, and I came away under the con- 
viction that a movement is in progress here of untold 
value to the inhabitants of this city, of this kingdom, 
and of the world at large. Surely it has on it the seal 
and approval of Almighty God, the Father, Son, and 
Holy Ghost. 

"Public worship was followed immediately by the 
celebration of the Lord's Supper, when two hundred 
and fifty communicants gathered around the table. It 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 43 

was a delightful hour. I had communed with the 
Germans at Hamburg, with the Danes at Copenhagen, 
and now I was permitted to partake with the Swedes 
in Stockholm. Many with whom I participated had 
suffered * persecution for the cross of Christ.' As I 
looked on them, and called to mind their sacrifices and 
sufferings, I felt myself unworthy of such companion- 
ship. These are new pioneers for the world in the 
cause of a pure Christianity ; they are apostles of free- 
dom. All classes and conditions of society were rep- 
resented." 

A CITY LIFE— A RURAL LIFE. 

Young redder, beware of the city ! The tempter lurks 
at every corner. How many young persons rue the 
day they left the paternal roof — " sweet home" — the 
pleasant fields, flowery gardens, beautiful landscapes ! 
How wild, how mad the folly of those who crowd into 
the city — into all cities — fancying that there must be 
room and work there for one more, without consider- 
ing that thousands already there are superfluous, idle, 
and miserable, and that each new influx is an added 
bar to the window which shuts out hope. 

" The gates of hell are open night and day ; 
Smooth the descent, and easy is the way," 

expresses a sad truth, ever pertinent. The youth, male 
or female, who brings to the city the reality, or even 
the semblance of rustic innocence, may find Satan's 
recruiting sergeants on any street corner. Beware ! 



44 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



MAN IN THE PULPIT, AND OUT OF THE PULPIT. 

You haven't Bible-fire enough, not half, not one- 
fourth. To preach well, gospelly, soul-savingly, with 
fire on fire, you must have more Bible in your mind's 
eye, in your heart, your life, at your tongue's end, ster- 
eotyped in your inmost soul, burningly. You lack not 
for words, you talk fast enough, say very many good 
and forcible things, edifying to some extent, in your 
exhortations and sermonizings ; but you lack Bible, 
Bible fire. Your arguments are not backed with Bible. 
Every sentence of logic and sound reasoning should be 
enforced, clinched, and riveted with things from the 
word of God, " quick and powerful, sharper than any 
two-edged sword." 

Beloved, go to the Bible, commence anew to study 
it, search it, pray over it, commit it to memory, hide it 
in your heart, breathe it out in your life. Go to the 
bottom, dig down deep, for gold, precious gold, more 
precious than rubies. " Search the Scriptures, for in 
them ye think ye have eternal life, and they are they 
that testify of me." 

This is the secret of all secrets, the only hope of a 
v^orld's salvation. Departing from this blessed book 
has been the downfall, the ruin in all ages. 

"The Bible — ^grand and heavenly chart, 
On which is ti*aced the nari'ow road 
Which leads the pilgrim traveller 
Up to the realms of bliss — to God." 



THE FIRE THAT BUBNS. 45 

"Man in the pulpit," will you now begin to drink 
anew at tliis pure, living fountain, the water of life, this 
well of water, whereof, if a man drink, he shall never 
thirst— never die ? 

Precious gold, pure gold, wrought gold, beautiful 
gold, fine gold, gold seven times purified — will you 
work at this rich mine of gold inexhaustible ? 

" The Bible — book of wondrous love, 
Borne from God^s eternal throne 
In mercy's aims to fallen man, 
To tell the mission of the Son." 

Speak of this heavenly gift, dwell upon its excellen- 
cies, its beauties, its glories, its life-giving power, the 
hope it gives, the faith, the peace, the joy — the all and 
in all. While Kfe remains, cease not to extol this 
blessed volume — exalt it to heaven. 

"What glory gilds the sacred page, 
Majestic, like the sun! 
It gives a light to every age, 
It gives, but borrows none." 

It's the Bible for the ministers and for the parents, 
it's the Bible for the children, it's the Bible for the sin- 
ners, it's the Bible for the saints. The Bible is life — 
"it is spirit, it is life." It's the Bible to convict, 
it's the Bible to convert, it's the Bible to purify and 
sanctify. It's the Bible in the church ; it's the Bible 
in the closet, in the family ; it's the Bible in the heart, 
in the life. 



46 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

It's the Bible, the blessed Bible, now, henceforth, 
and forever. 

" Man in the pulpit,'^ get the Bible rooted and grounded 
in your inmost soul, that it may flow out spontaneously, 
be seen beaming forth radiantly in every look, thought, 
word, deed, every moving muscle of yours. 

Students for the ministry study, and study, and 
keep on studying, year after year. But what do they 
study? The Bible? Is the Bible their text-book— 
the beginning and the ending of their theological 
course — the first of all, midst of all, last of all ? Is 
this blessed volume interwoven into the very fibres of 
their whole being ? Are they moulded over and over 
into the gospel mould — sanctified through it ? 

The Waldenses were not permitted to open their lips 
in the pulpit, till the Bible was their daily food, their 
meat and their drink ; till sanctified through it wholly 
— spirit, soul, and body ; till, strong in the Lord and in 
the power of his might. Consequently they " spake as 
one having authority, and not as the scribes." 

The Waldenses were more remarkable than any 
other people on the face of the earth, for the large 
portions of Scripture which they committed to memory. 
Scripture was their all ; and as the Jews treasured the 
manuscripts of the Old Testament, and carried them 
everywhere in their wanderings, often, as in the perse- 
cutions of Spain, winding them round their bodies, to 
part with them only with their lives, so these Walden- 
ses laid up rich portions aUke from the Old and New 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 47 

Testaments in their hearts, so that they covld not be 
taken from them. The preparation of their pastors 
for the ministry consisted in learning by heart the 
Gospels of Matthew and John, all the epistles, and 
most of the writings of David, Solomon, and the 
prophets. 

These Waldenses preached what they practised, and 
practised what they preached. Their souls were alive 
in God, fired with holy love — fire on fiire — the fire of 
the Bible. 

The holy prophets had fire — fire on fire — blazing out. 
Where did they get it ? From the Bible ? Yes ; from 
the Bible. John the Baptist had fire, holy fire ; Paul 
had fire, Peter, James, and John, pentecostal, baptis- 
mal — fiire on fire — blazing out. Where did they get it ? 
From the Bible ? Yes ; from the Bible. Luther had 
fire, Wesley had fire, Bunyan had fire — fire on fire — 
blazing out. Edwards had fire, Whitfield had fire, the 
Tenants had fire, Payson had fire, James B. Taylor 
had fire — fire on fire — ^blazing out. 

Where did all these gospel firebrands get their fire 
— fire on fire ? From the Bible ? Yes ; from the Bible. 
Oh for this fire — fire on fire ! " Man in the pulpit," will 
you have this fire — fire on fire — blazing out? Go to 
the Bible, read the Bible, pray it out, search it out, 
live it out. 

"Hail! sacred truth, whose piercing rays 
Dispel the shades of night ; 
Diffusing o'er a ruined world 
The healing beams of lighi" 



48 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

FIRE IN THE PULPIT; OR, PULPIT-FIRE. 

FIKE I FIRE 1 FIBE ! GOSPEL FIRE ! 

It will not do, you cannot make it do, brother, with- 
OTit gospel fire. Preach ? No, you can't. Pray ? No, 
you can't. Sing ? No, you can't. Exhort sinners to 
repentance, saints to live holy, rejoice evermore, pray 
without ceasing ? No, you can't. It is tinkle, tinkle, 
tinkle ! nothing but tinkle, or sounding brass. No fire 
or substance in it ; no flint, no fire, no hammer ; no 
point, pith, or marrow of true Bible theology. "Without 
holy fire there's not even a flash in the pan! How, 
then, the explosion? Sparks of your own kindling 
won't do. It is fire, fire, ^re.^ You want, you must 
have the burning, scorching, overflowing lava of God's 
truth — ^fire within, fire without, life-giving, soul-kind- 
ling. 

These old sermons, plodded over years ago, taken 
from your drawer or bookcase, musty -as they are, if 
not mouldy, will never do to kindle the soul, arouse the 
conscience, lead sinners to cry out, " Lord, save ; we 
perish." You lacked gospel fire when these sermons 
were penned, years ago — fire on fire; and if no fire 
then, no fire now. Sleep under them? Be sure the 
people will sleep the sleep of death under these musty, 
mouldy, skeleton sermons, without fire. 

Sermons, new or old, must have gospel fire — fire on 
fire — " The sword that cuts, the fire that burns." 



THE FIRE THAT BUENS. 



49 




CONSTANTmOPLE, RESIDEIS'CE OF CONSTANTINE. 

CoNSTANTiNE, Sensible of the great advantages of the 
position of this city, the metropolis of the extensive 
empire of European Turkey, fixed his residence here in 
330, in preference to Rome. 

Wliatever may have been the character of Constan- 
tine's conversion to the Christian faith, it removed all 
impediments to an open profession of Christianity ; 
persecution ceased, religion became popular, and soon 
began to suffer from being brought into close contact 
with the fostering influence of secular power. The sim- 
plicity of the Gospel was corrupted ; pompous rites and 
ceremonies were introduced ; worldly honors and emol- 
uments were conferred on the teachers of Christianity ; 
and the kingdom of Christ, in a great measure, was 
converted into a kingdom of the vforld and of Satan ! 

3 



50 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



SETTLING THE QUESTION. 

*' My beloved is mine, and I am his.^^ — Can. ii. 16. " All mine are tliine^ 
and thine are miner — Jolm, xvii. 10. 

Eeader, have you settled the question of salyation 
once and forever? This is the first thing, the all- 
important. What can you do for God's glory in the 
salvation and sanctification of souls, unless your own 
feet are on the Eock, Christ Jesus — ^unless you feel and 
Iziww that Christ is yours, and that you are Christ's ; 
that Christ is in you, the hope of glory, rooted and 
grounded in love. This settling the question for our- 
selves, this firm, steadfast, unwavering, joyful hope of 
life everlasting, is the one thing needful, indispensable 
to our own success in warring the good Avarfare, fight- 
ing the good fight, storming the fort of Satan — " causing 
him to fall as lightning from heaven. ¥v hat one spe- 
cial thing stimulated the holy prophets and apostles, 
fired their souls for salvation with a burning, flaming 
zeal to pull sinners out of the fires of hell, to impart 
light and life to a whole world of rebel sinners lost ? 
"Was it not settling the question in the outset, of their 
own interest in the blood of the new and everlasting- 
covenant? Why did Paul, Peter, James, and John 
stretch every nerve, make every sacrifice, put forth 
renewedly and incessantly all the faculties of their 
being, to sanctify the Church, make it pure, unblam- 
able, without spot or wrinkle, a lighthouse, a " city set 



THE FIBE THAT BURNS. 51 

on a hill, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible 
as an army with banners?" Was not settling this 
same question the mainspring that moved the whole 
machinery ? For this very hope, sure and steadfast, 
they counted not their lives dear. They hieio Christ 
had pardoned their sins^ redeemed them through his 
precious blood, the washing of regeneration. They 
hiew in whom they had believed. Not a wavering 
doubt existed here respecting their names being written 
in the Lamb's book of life, " They believed, therefore 
they spoke, not as the scribes," but as those having 
authority. Having this hope steadfast to the end, 
they endured hardness as good soldiers of the Cross. 
Paul settled this question at once and forever ; conse- 
quently he exclaimed, " I reckon that the sufferings of 
this present time are not worthy to be compared mth 
the glory that shall be revealed in us. Nay, in all 
these things we are more than conquerors through him 
that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, 
nor life, nor angels, nor principahties, nor powders, nor 
things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor 
depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate 
us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our 
Lord." Rom. viii. 18, 37-39. 

Examine the epistles of Paul ; how do they com- 
mence? Li the subjunctive, doubtingly and uncer- 
tainly ? Any misgivings respecting his apostleship, or 
his hope in Christ ? Hark ! " Paul, a servant of Jesus 
Christ, called to be an apostle." Eom. i. 1, 2. Again, 



52 THE S^YORD THAT CUTS: 

" Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment 
of God." 1 Tim, i. 1, 2. Paul uses the indicative 
present, the positive, expressive of the utmost assur- 
ance of faith. This setthng the question gave Paul 
foothold, vantage ground. " The joy of the Lord was 
his strength." This settling the question is the secret 
of holy living, extensive usefulness, of striding rapidly 
heavenward. One thus established in the faith, rooted 
and grounded in love, strong in the Lord and in the 
power of his might, can chase a thousand, and two put 
ten thousand to flight. The eminently holy and useful 
in all ages are those who settle the " question." The 
apostles were not duly prepared to meet the emergen- 
cies of the day till this important question was settled. 
Indeed, they were forbidden to go forward in their 
ministerial labors till this question was settled, till they 
received power from on high, the baptism of the Holy 
Spmt — the tongue of fire. How is it now? Is this 
question settled generally in our Protestant churches ? 
Is there one in ten whose names are on the church- 
book that can say : " I know that my Redeemer liveth : 
I am ready always to give a reason of the hope that is 
in me, with meekness and fear :" I knoiv whom I have 
believed ? 

INFERENCES AND REMARKS. 

1. This not settling the " question" is an open viola- 
tion of a positive precept. We are solemnly bound to 
know ourselves what manner of spirit we are of, for "if 



THE FIBE THAT BURNS. 53 

any man have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of 
His." " Know ye not yourselves how that Jesus Christ 
is in you, except ye be reprobates?" — 2 Cor, xiii. 5. 

2. "We see why the world Ueth in wickedness. "Why 
the broad road to death eternal is thronged ! Impeni- 
tent sinners will not settle the question. '' Ye will not 
come to me that ye may have life." 

3. We perceive why so many have a name to live, 
and are dead ; try to serve two masters ; carry the 
world in one hand and religion in the other — who " fear 
the Lord, and serve their own gods." They do not, 
and perhaps iiever have, never will '' settle the ques- 
tion." We see and know why so many professed disci- 
ples of the Lord Jesus stumble, waver, hesitate, halt 
between t^vo opinions, and are all their lifetime subject 
to bondage, crying out, " Oh, wi^etched beings, who 
shall deliver us fi'om the body of this death !" They will 
not " settle the question" at once, and be free men and 
women in Christ Jesus. Young converts, newly-born 
souls in their j&rst espousals to Christ, do settle the 
question. They are obliged to forsake all sin — put off 
the old man with his deeds ere they receive pardon, 
the smihng face of Jesus. But, sad to relate, very 
many, from disobedience, the neglect of some duty, by 
not following on to know the Lord, unsettle what was 
settled, and are again " entangled in the yoke of bond- 
age." Gal. V. 1. "Ye did run well, who did hinder 
you that ye should not obey the truth ?" GaL v. 7. 

4. We see why so many professed teachers of the 



54 THE SWOED THAT CUTS : 

gospel succumb to a worldly, man-fearing, time-serving 
policy, bow to poplar views, the doctrine of expedi- 
ency and compromise, lose the power, the holy unction 
they had, are become barren fig-trees, a hissing and a 
by-word ! They do not " settle the question ;" but 
love the praise of men more than the praise of God. 
" How can ye believe who receive honor one of an- 
other, and seek not the honor which cometh from God 
only?" 

5. We see how the world is to be saved. Ministers 
and people, all who name the name of Christ must 
settle the question as the holy prophets did — Moses, 
Joshua, and Caleb, who followed the Lord wholly. 
There are those in all ages that do settle the question 
— and keep it settled, grow stronger and stronger, 
shine brighter and brighter, unto the perfect day. 

" Fimily stand, though syrens lure thee ; 
Fu'mly stand, though falsehood reign ; 
Holding justice, truth, and mercy, 
Die we may, but cannot fail." 



UNPROFITABLE WAITING. 

Do not wait for a change of outward circumstances ; 
but take your circumstances as they are, and make the 
best of them. Luther moved the world, not by waiting 
for a favorable opportunity, but by doing his daily 
work — ^by doing God's will day by day, without think- 
ing of looking beyond. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 55 



SATAN CREEPS IN— WHEN? SOWS TARES— WHEN? 

While men sleep — take the easy-chair? Or when 
awake, on fire gospelly for salvation — flying on v/ings 
of mercy, truth, and love ? 

When the Church is active, diligent, faithfully, per- 
severingly, prayerfully so — ^both minister and people? 
When all the members are walking in the path of duty, 
in oU the commandments and ordinances of God blame- 
less — contending earnestly for the faith once delivered 
to the saints, acting on the aggressive, striviny for con- 
quest, making constant inroads on Satan's territory? 
When keeping fully and firmly their covenant vows, in 
watching over each other, praying for each other, at- 
tending duly and punctually on closet and family du- 
ties, on all the stated meetings of the Church — business 
meetings, meetings for conference, prayer, and praise 
^contributing liberally to every benevolent object? 
Is this the time for Satan to creep in ? In siLch a state 
of the Church you hear no surmisings, bickerings, tat- 
tlings, backbitings, heart-burnings, strifes, and divis- 
ions. Satan has no space to occupy, no foothold. 
Doubting Castle is demolished, every man is at his 
post attending to his business and God's. On ! on ! To 
arms ! to arms ! Conquest or death ! 

Bread is eaten with joy, gladness, and singleness of 
heart from house to house. Sinners jiock to the stand- 
ard of King Jesus, as doves to their windows. " Glory 



56 THE SWOED THAT CUTS : 

to God in the highest," is tuned afresh by angehc 
choirs. 

But when does Satan creep in, mar the peace ? 
"When do roots of bitterness spring up — when do strifes, 
jarring discords, tattlings, backbitings, heart-burnings, 
and excommunications begin ? When do we find fault 
with long sermons and short sermons, doctrinal ser- 
mons and lukewarm sermons, with long prayers and for- 
mal prayers, with cold hearts and stiff necks, faint hearts, 
proud hearts, and rebellious hearts? When do we 
mourn that so few come to our solemn feasts, our meet- 
ings for business and conference — oh, when? When 
is Doubting Castle occupied, every apartment ? When 
do coYetousness, pride, folly, fashion, worldly amuse- 
ment, steal the heart ? When do secret societies creep 
in like a serpent, eat out the vitality of true piety ? 

" When God resolves to scourge a nation's sins, 
'Tis in tlie Church the leprosy begins." 

Beloved, when did Amalek prevail ? 

When did King David commit the great sin, the sin 
of sins, adultery and murder, that cost him groans, 
and tears, and blood ? When about his Master's busi- 
ness, when in the field, with armor burnished, fighting 
manfully God's battles ? or was his fall (his awful fall !) 
when he had let down his watch, neglected his closet, 
family, and Church duties, when enjoying inglorious 
ease ? Then, when lust had conceived, what did it 
bring forth ? And sin, when finished, what did it bring 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 57 

forth ? Death, death ! When idle, we tempt the devil 
to tempt us ! 

O man of God, O woman of God, O child of God, 
ye little lambs of the flock, ye newly-born sonls, as you 
value hfe, hfe eternal, God's glory in the salvation of a 
world of rebels lost — up ! UP ! about your Master's busi- 
ness. Say, " I am doing a great work, so that I can- 
not come down." 

There is no other possible safety but in acting on the 
aggressive, constantly carrying the warfare into the en- 
emy's country, making inroads upon the devil's terri- 
tory. Where now the once flourishing Churches of 
Asia? 

" I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor 
hot ; I would thou wert either cold or hot. So then, 
because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, 
I will spew thee out of my mouth." 
"Ne'er think the yictoiy won, 
Nor lay thine armor down ; 
Thine arduous work will not be done 
Till thou obtain thy crown." 



" Of a truth we perceive that God is no respecter of 
persons : but in every nation he that feareth him and 
worketh righteousness is accepted with him. The 
word which God sent unto the children of Israel, 
preaching peace by Jesus Christ : he is Lord of all. 
Go ye, therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them 
in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the 
Holy Ghost." 

3^ 



58 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS 




GIBEOK 



GiBEON, formerly a city of the Hivites ; afterward a 
Levitical city, in the tribe of Benjamin. Josh, xviii. 25. 
The Canaanites secured a treaty with Joshua by strat- 
agem. JosTi, ix. 8-14. The fault of Joshua was, he did 
not seek direction from above in a matter of so great 
importance. " And the men took of their victuals, and 
asked not counsel of the Lord." A sad mistake, and 
yet how frequent ! '^ In all thy ways acknowledge him, 
and he shall direct thy paths." 

" If any of you lack wisdom*, let him ask of God, that 
giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not ; and it 
shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing 
waveringc For he that wavereth is like a wave of the 
sea, driven with the wind and tossed." James, i. 5, 6. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 59 



THANKFUL FOLKS, OR FOLKS THAT GIVE THANKS. 

" Oh, rather let me cease to breathe, 
Than cease from praismg Thee.'* 

Thanking the Lord for this, thanking him for that. 

Thank the Lord, do you? When? How often? 
For what? For httle things as well as for great 
things ? for things temporal, things spiritual ? for 
things at home and things abroad ? for the food you 
eat, the water you drink ? for the sleep you sleep ? 
Dare you partake of God's bounties, open your mouth 
to receive the first morsel of temporal nourishment, ere 
you lift the eye of thanksgiving to the Giver — ask Him 
to bless the food that nourishes your body? Dare 
you place a cup of cold water to your lips without first 
thanking God for so rich a blessing? Dare you close 
your eyes in sweet slumber ere you implore God's 
mercy for protection, for sweet and heavenly rest ? 

" I will both lay me down in peace and sleep, for 
Thou, Lord, only makest me to dwell in safety." Ps, 
vi. 8. " I laid me dotvn and slept ; I awaked, for the 
Lord sustained me.''' 

How wonderful is sleep ! Yet, because it is so com- 
mon, we think little about it ; and because it comes so 
easy, we seldom give God thanks for it. But to a 
thoughtful, thankful mind, great are the mysteries and 
the mercies of sleep. 

Dare you rise up, open your eyes to behold the light 



60 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

of a new day, without special manifestations of grati- 
tude and praise to Him who sends his angels to en- 
camp round about you while in a state of unconscious- 
ness ? Dare you think, speak, act, go out, or come in, 
without imploring the Merciful One to have mercy on 
you — be your Guide, Protector, your Sun, your Shield, 
your exceeding Great Reward — to give you wisdom, 
grace on grace ; that the words of your mouth, the 
meditations of your heart, may be acceptable in His 
sight ? Dare you engage in any duty, any occupation 
— speak on this subject or on that — write this or write 
that — do this thing or that thing — except first lifting 
up your eyes to the hills whence cometh j^our help ? 
Dare you write anything to your friends or your foes, 
for the press, or for the public, without earnestly 
beseeching Infinite Wisdom for the pen of a ready 
writer ? , 

In penning articles for the press, are you sure to ask 
counsel of God — beseech Him importunately for the 
Holy Spirit's influence ; that you may write as you 
ought, with life, spirit, and power ; that you may be 
led exclusively by the spirit of all wisdom, all gi^ace ; 
that every line, every page, every article, may be a 
blessing, spirit, life, life on life, power on power, the 
flint, the fire and hammer of God's word — quick and 
powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword, edifying, 
sanctifying, administering grace on grace ? 

Can you write even a business-note as you ought, 
without assistance from above ? When you receive a 



THE FIRE THAT BURKS. . 61 

letter from a friend, ere you break the seal, do jou ask 
the blessing of Heaven to rest upon it ? When you go 
out and come in, walk by the wayside, in the family or 
social circle, in whatever you think, say, or do, is it 
pray, pray — praise, praise — glory, glory ? This is the 
only true and safe way, and just what God means when 
he says : " In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He 
shall direct thy paths." " Be careful for nothing, but 
in everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanks- 
giving, let your requests be made known to God." 
" Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the 
Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." EpJi. 
V. 20. " Praying always, with all prayer and supplica- 
tion in the Spirit, watching thereunto with all persever- 
ance and supplication for all saints." EjjJi, vi. 18. 
" Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his face contin- 
ually." 1 Chron, xvi. 11. " And it shall come to pass 
that before they call I ^vill answer, and while they are 
yet speaking, I will hear." Isaiah, Ixv. 24. 

" Since Thou dost guide my lot, my Father, it is well, 

For well Thou knowest my heart, and what I need, 
And patiently I wait to hear Thee tell 

Whate'er Thy heavenly wisdom hath decreed. 
If life, and friends, and earth's best joys be mine, 

I thank Thy bounteous love that I am blest ; 
Or if my life be shadowed, I resign 

My all to Thee — Thou knowest what is best." 



" There is no wisdom, nor understanding, nor counsel 
against the Lord." Prov. xxii. 30. 



62 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS 




BETHLEHEM. 

Bethlehem, the birthplace of David and of Christ, 
in the tribe of Jndah, is six miles south by west of Jeru- 
salem. Its memory is delightfully associated with the 
names of Boaz and Euth. Above all, it is hallowed as 
the place where the Redeemer was born. Over that 
lovely spot the guiding-star hovered ; there the Eastern 
sages worshipped the King of kings ; and there, where 
David watched his flocks and praised God, were heard 
the songs of angelic hosts at the Saviour's birth. Luke, 
ii. 8-14. 

" And there were in the same country shepherds 
abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flocks by 
night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, 
and the glory of the Lord shone round about them : 
and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto 
them : Fear not ; for behold, I bring you good tidings 
of great joy, which shall b^e to all people." 



THE FIEE THAT BUBNS. 63 

SMILING FOLKS; 

OR, 
LOOKING KINDLY AND SPEAKING KINDLY. 

"Look kindly on the human race — 

Look kindly on each face you see : 
Look kindly, e'en though frowns you meet, 

For sunshine melts the snow; 
And thou, with kindly looks and words, 

Mayst melt another's woe. 
Then, oh ! look kindly ! Many hearts 

Once gay and warm as thine. 
Through harsh, cold treatment have been made 

To mourn, sigh, and repine : 
Their voice, once gentle, now no more 

In loving accents flows — 
The buds and flowers of love lie dead 

Beneath the winter snows. 

** Look kindly ! Gentle looks from thee, 

And loving words sincere. 
May soothe the aching, breaking heart. 

And melt the frozen tear ! 
Yes, yes, look kindly — smile on all — 

And weep — ^yes, sadly weep — 
When thou shalt see another fall 

In sorrow's dark retreat" 

" Weee I to live my life again," said a dear friend, 
" I would make it a point to do kindness to a fellow- 
being whenever I had the opportunity. I regret very 
much that my habit has been so different, that I have 



64 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

induced feelings so unlike those which lead to such a 
course of life. 

" And when I look back on my intercourse with my 
fellow-men all the way along, I can confidently say 
that I never yet did a kindness to a being without 
being happier. So that if I were governed by mere 
selfish motives, and wanted to live the happiest life I 
could, I would just simply obey the Bible precept, to 
do good unto all men as I had opportunity." 

What a holy radiance kind words shed over the 
heart ! What a lasting impression they leave upon 
the human mind ! None can tell. They are deeply 
engraven upon the tablet of our memories, which recall 
associations that are past — yes, forever. A sweet, gen- 
tle temper is a twofold blessing ; it equally blesses 
those who possess it, and those who come under its in- 
fluence ; for it is encouraged to " holiness," while scat- 
tering seeds which germinate, spring forth, " and are 
beautiful." Oh ! there is something beautiful, elevated, 
and sublime in the meaning of this command : " Speak 
gently." 

'"Tis short, and sweet, and good, and plain, 
Easy to learn and to retain ; 
May grace divine our souls renew, 
And 'twill be sweet to practise, too." 

Pleasant words and kind actions are the true pearls 
that cannot be lost. They are the oil of gladness to 
our awaiting spirits. The soul (immortal) inhales the 
pure odor, the sweet innocence of a gentle, " loving 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 65 

kinduess," and is nerved to liigli and holy aspira- 
tions. 

Every unkind word and deed, and every secret 
thought and purpose of the mind, reacts upon the mind 
itseK, and leaves its own impression there, as upon an 
ineffaceable tablet. Aside from all the influence it 
may exert upon others, it puts imperishable impres- 
sions upon our own minds. 

Smiles are the sunbeams of the face ; they make 
even the plainest countenance interesting, if not really 
beautiful. One may almost judge a character from the 
smile. A poet says : 

" A pleasant smile for every face, 
Oh, 'tis a blessed thing ! 
It will the lines of care erase, 
And spots of beauty bring." . 

A smile may impart hope to the poverty-stricken ; it 

can do no harm— and oh, how much good, no one knows 

but the happy receiver. Smiles lighten many, many a 

heart that is sad and cheerless. Another poet prettily 

says : 

"Ah! never does the youthful smile 

Such angel sweetness borrow. 

As when it would the heart beguile 

Of one dark hour of sorrow." 

A kind, sympathetic smile is never in vain ; it light- 
ens your own heart to see the good it does to others. 
Are there not many dark hours of sorrow ? Think if 
you could cheer some — and you may many. Perhaps 



66 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

some day your heart will bound at a kind smile, and if 
you do not impart them to others, how can you hope 
to receive them ? Smiles and tears are twin sisters, 
both capable of doing an incalculable amount of good. 
Even the raving maniac is not insensible to a kind 
smile. 

Give an encouraging smile to the young and diffi- 
dent ; it may, perhaps, be the means of bringing out 
some bright talent hitherto unsuspected and unknown, 

for — 

" A word, a look, has crushed to earth 

Full many a budding flower, 

Which, had a smile but owned its birth. 

Would bless life's darkest hour." 

Many hearts pine away in secret anguish from unkind- 
ness from those who are their nearest, and who should 
be their dearest friends, when a kind smile or action 
from them would have cheered their drooping spirits, 
ar^d created, as it were, a new atmosphere for them to 
live in. To win the love of others, you must express 
an anxiousness for their welfare, an interest in their 
well-being. 

" A little word in kindness spoken, 
A motion or a tear. 
Has often healed the heart that's broken, 
And made a friend sincere. 

" Then deem it not an idle thing, 
A pleasant word to speak; 
The face you wear, the thoughts you bring, 
The heart may heal or break." 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 67 

If old and young would live eren halfway up to the 
" golden rule," or to that sweet song of childhood's 

days, 

"Let love through all your actions run, 

And all your words be mild," 

how much misery, how many bitter pangs of suffer- 
ing would be spared to all ! 

Pleasant words are a perpetual sunshine ; and the 
sweet flowers of meadow and mountain-side may as 
well be expected to grow and thrive when transplanted 
to a cayern, as the flowers and blossoms of the soul, 
uninfluenced by this light and warmth, which play over 
the countenance, and strike down into the heart. 

Pleasant words are cheap ; smiles are not costly. 
The giving of them does not impoverish ; the face over 
which they pass is not paler or sicklier, but is more 
beautiful and beloved. Pleasant words enrich ; for 
while they brighten and cheer him to whom they are 
spoken, they reflect gladness also on him who utters 
them. 

Oh, smile then, beloved reader, always, cheerfully, 
holily. Let your smiling deeds of kindness be warm, 
sunshiny, heavenly ; let your wliole soul be in your 
smiles ; let them flow out from a heart richly imbued 
with the graces of the Holy Spirit. ^ 

* When you thunder, when you lighten — flash Sinai's fire — use the 
two-edged sword of God's truth, quick and powerful, against all sin 
— be sui*e the spirit of Jesus dwells in youi* heart richly — love, pity, 
tender compassion, " charity that never faileth." 



68 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS I 







^i^~. 




TIBERIAS. 

Tiberias, a city of Galilee, situated on the western 
shore of Lake Genesareth. The lake also is called the 
Sea of Tiberias. John^ vi. 1, 2. 

" After these things Jesns went over the Sea of Gal- 
ilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. And a great multi- 
tude followed him, because they saw his miracles which 
he did on them that were diseased." 

Here, at this time, Jesus fed about five thousand with 
five barley-loaves and two small fishes. " When they 
were filled, he said linto his disciples. Gather up the 
fragments that remain, that nothing be lost." 

What a lesson here ! Save ? Yes ; time, talents, 
property, everything valuable for your own and others' 
use ; Uttle things and gi'eat things. 



THE FIKE THAT BUKNS. 69 



KICKIJSTG FOLKS; OR, FOLKS THAT KICK! 

" Stand firm ! What though perhaps you fall, 
'Tis with your armor gh-ded on — 
You have obey'd the general's call." 

Kick, does he ? what makes him kick ? Persons that 
kick, have a reason for so doing — have something to kick 
at. Saul of Tarsus kicked for a while, but he found it 
hard work; so does every one that kicks against the 
truth. " If it be of God ye cannot overthrow it, lest haply 
ye be found to fight against God." Ads, iii. 39. 

There is no peace to these kickers, they are like '' the 
troubled sea, casting up mire and dirt." Saul never 
kicked any more after the scales fell from his eyes — his 
name was changed to Paul the Apostle. The cause of 
all kicking against the truth is because truth is hated. 
Persons that kick do not like to be probed, searched 
out, to have their sins exposed, brought to light. 

We need not expect anything else but kicks from those 
who hold on to lust, pride, covetousness, or oppression. 
Persons also who manufacture, sell, and use rum and 
tobacco, write novels, puff novels, sell novels, read 
novels, and the like, are almost sure to kick when re- 
proved ; we have found it so. Ministers, editors, theologi- 
cal teachers, that keep back part of the price, cry " Peace, 
peace," when there is no peace, that succumb to iniquity 
in high places, wink at sin, bow the knee to the popular 
voice, hush agitation, are almost sure to kick when a 



70 THE SWORD THAT CUTS I 

word of reproof is dropped in the ear. And a kick from 
this quarter, of all other kicks, tells. It is a kick in very 
deed. "Every one that doeth evil, hateth the light; 
neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be 
reproved. John, iii. 20. 

It was kicking in gospel times — it's kicking now, in our 
times. Haters of the truth kicked then, haters of the 
same truth kick now, and the same kicking against God's 
truth doubtless will go on, so long as there are haters 
of the truth to kick. The true prophets of God were 
kicked for telling the truth ; so also the apostles. Paul 
was kicked and kicked time after time, for rebuking sin 
and sinners. The Scribes and Pharisees of old kicked 
terribly, when Christ exposed their sins, their pride, 
covetousness, hypocrisy, their spirit of caste and aris- 
tocracy, v/hile they honored God with their lips, at the 
same time their hearts were far from him ; when he com- 
pared them to " whited sepulchres, which indeed appear 
beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's 
bones, and of all uncleanness." See MaWieiv, xxiii., 
throughout. 

Luther was kicked severely for rebuking sin in high 
places; so was Wesley, Whitfield, Bunyan, Baxter, 
Edwards, Payson, the Tenants. And these same kick- 
ings are going on. Our eye is now fixed on a beloved 
minister of the gospel who has received kicks, not a 
few, while pulling sinners out of the fires of hell, by 
thousands: still the blessed man labors on, toils on, 
fights on, sounds the gospel trumpet of full and free sal- 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 71 

vation, louder and still louder, in the midst of all these 
kicks, even though kicked by bishops and doctors of 
divinity. 

The beloved Tyng of Philadelphia, who on his dying 
pillow said to his father, " Stand up for Jesus," was 
kicked out of his pulpit for rebuking sin in high places, 
opening his lips for the dumb, and those " appointed to 
destruction." "Was he disheartened at these kicks, that 
kicked him out of his parsonage ? Did he stop preach- 
ing the truth, close his lips, hush the question of re- 
form and salvation, because of this kicking ? Nay, he 
went on in the name of his divine Lord, declaring still 
more earnestly and faithfully " all the words of this 
life." God honored him, gave him a name imperish- 
able. " Them that honor nie," saith the Lord, "will I 
honor; and them that despise me shall be lightly 
esteemed." Brother, sister, minister, editor, are you 
God's, wholly God's — God's now^, henceforth, and for- 
ever? Do you expect to move on heavenward, softly- 
and smoothly, in the path of duty — stand for Jesus al- 
ways, without any kicks? we tell you nay, nay'' 

" Where is thy cross — the daily care, 
The daily toil, the daily strife — 
The warfare thou art called to bear 
With foes who aim at more than life ?'* 

What says Christ ? " He that will live godly in Christ 
Jesus, shall (not may) suffer persecution." " I come not 
to send peace on earth, but a sword." " What I tell you 
in darkness, that speak ye in light ; and what ye hear in 



72 THE SWOPiD THAT CUTS: 

tlie ear, that preacli ye upon the house-tops.' " And 
fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to 
kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy 
both soul and body in hell." 

'' Must I be carried to the skies 
On flowery beds of ease, 
While others fought to win the prize, 
And sailed through bloody seas ?" 



SATAN IN THE CAMP. 



Once let the peo^ole get poisoned with the wretched false- 
hood, that to carry on the work of the Church and meet 
its costs they must contrive some roundabout device of 
sale, or fair, or picnic, — a mixture of merchandise, cajol- 
ery and merry-making, by which the few shall be deluded 
into parting with more than they want to give, and the 
many shall be educated into the worse delusion of sup- 
posing they are not to surrender anything to the Christ 
who died for them, without an ostensible equiivalent 
taken back, — and you strike at the root of all Christian 
charity while the name is on your lips. You cast up a 
treacherous highway at the Lord's feet. You hide out 
of sight the central reality of sacrifice, which is the giv- 
ing up to God of that which costs the selfish heart some- 
thing. You cast out the heart of the Church, to extend 
its outward prosperity. 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 73 

THE CONSERYATIYE PLASTERER; OR, LOOP-HOLE MAK 

KICKING OYER THE^GS ; MAKIXG LOOP-HOLES. 

*' Be brave, man of God, take up amis 

Against the dread aiTay 
Of foes of trutli that you must face, 

Be what thy fortune may. 
Flee flatteiy's smile — seduction's net 

Is spread out to betray 
Unwary man ; and think and speak 

And act the truth alway." 

He says good things, excellent, pointed, truthful, 
conscience-pricking, in the beginning ; but before clos- 
ing he kicks them all over , spoils what he has said, by 
concessions or loo]3-holes. He gives the guilty one a 
place to creep out. Brother, w^hy not take the Eible, 
do as the Holy Spirit does, and as every faithful teacher 
should do — lay the axe at the root, bring dow^n the sledge- 
hammer of God's truth on the heart and conscience of 
evil-doers, tobacco chewing and smoking laymen, dea- 
cons, and D.D.'s, and there let it rest, without diluting, 
temporizing, or apologizing. Lay God's truth at the door 
of the sinner's conscience — there leave it to do itsoffice- 
w^ork. This loop-hole business is mischievous. Light 
has gone forth to the ends of the earth. The time 
was when this sin was winked at ; but where now is 
there a tobacco-raiser, seller, chewer, smoker, or snuffer 
that has not been rebuked for this lust of the fiesh, this 
wicked expenditure of God's bounties. — exhorted with 
tears to abandon the dirty tyrant for conscience' sake 
and for mercy's sake, for his own good and the good of 



74 THE SWORD TEAT CUTS : 

the community. Look still further at the objections to 
the habit of chewing, smoking, and snuffing tobacco : — 

1st. We are divinely commanded to " deny our- 
selves," to ''keep the body under," to " abstain from all 
appearance of evil," and " cleanse ourselves from all 
filthiness of the flesh and spirit." The Christian's body 
is a " temple of the Holy Ghost," and he has no right to 
pollute it with anything filthy or poisonous. 

2d. It is an unseemly, uncleanly, unnatural, un- 
necessary, unhealthy, offensive, and unpleasant habit. 
It pollutes the very earth, the whole atmosphere around 
us, habituating our young men early and effectually to 
bow down their necks to the grievous yoke of the world, 
the flesh, and the devil. 

3d. Its general accompaniments are anything but 
good. It is generally associated with whiskey-bottles, 
low groggeries, profanity, and all manner of rowdyism. 
Only think ! to see ministers of the holy gospel of God 
going into a low, infectious dram-shop, or up to a tavern- 
bar, to fill a tobacco-box or to purchase cigars ! 
. 4th. The general voice of the deeply pious has ever 
been against it as a filthy, low, degrading, wicked, habit 
or practice. The following is from the pen of that great 
and good man, Adam Clarke : — 

" Every medical man knows well that the saliva 
which is so copiously drained off by the infamous quid 
and the scandalous pipe, is the first and greatest agent 
which nature employs in digesting food. 

" A single drop of the chemical oil of tobacco being 



THE FIEE THAT BUENS. 75 

put on the tongue of a cat produced violent convulsions, 
and killed her in the space of one minute. A thread 
dipped in the same oil, and drawn through a wound 
made by a needle in an animal, killed it in the space of 
seven minutes. 

" That it is sinful to use it as most do, I have no 
doubt. If destroying the constitution, and vilely squan- 
dering away the time and money which God has given 
for other and nobler purposes, may be termed sinful, 
can any who call themselves Christians vindicate their 
conduct in this respect ?" 

Therefore, beloved, when you open your mouth pub- 
licly, and declare to the people what a curse tobacco is 
upon the whole system — body, mind, and soul ; its dead- 
ening, polluting, sottish influences, the cause of numer- 
ous diseases and premature deaths ; that it tends, more 
or less, to sear the conscience, harden the heart and 
deaden the moral sensibihties ; that the example, more- 
over, is pernicious on the rising age ; — why, after all 
these declarations, and many more, portraying the evils 
of this poisonous narcotic, turn around and tell us that 
a man thus indulging in this pernicious habit, against 
light of conscience, the pubhc voice, the entreaties of 
his brethren, may, after all, be a good Christian ! 

Brother, where your Bible, where your consistency ? 
" Let God be true, though every man a liar." " Be not 
deceived ; God is not mocked : for whatsoever a man 
soweth, that shall he also reap." Why give Satan loop- 
holes? 



76 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS 




VIEW IN SHECHEM. 



Shechem, or Sycliem, is first mentioned in the liistory 
of Abraham, who erected his first altar in Canaan, and 
took possession of the country in the name of Jehovah. 
Gen, xii. 6. Jacob bought a field in this neighborhood, 
which he gave to his son Joseph, who was buried here. 
Gen. xlviii. 22. Here also Eehoboam gave the ten 
tribes occasion to revolt. 1 Kings, xii. In its vicinity 
was Jacob's well, at which Christ discoursed with the 
woman of Samaria, whose soul was touched with divme 
love, and who left her water-pot and went on her way 
rejoicing and praising God. John, iv. 5. 

Shechem also is the name of a Canaanitish prince, 
who abducted Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, and after- 
ward was slain, and all his father's house, by Simeon 



THE FIBE THAT BURNS. 7? 

and Levi. (See Gen, xxxiv.) Here we see the ruin- 
ous consequences of parental neglect and evil associa- 
tions. 

Dinah was an only daughter, and doubtless much 
beloved and too much indulged. She was enticed, or 
rather, in the outset, she went to visit " the daughters 
of the land," probably on some public occasion of mirth 
and festivity, — whether with or without the consent of 
her parents, we know not. 

J' Young persons are never so safe as when imder the 
care and inspection of prudent and pious parents. But 
those parents are far more inexcusable, who allow their 
daughters in acting so imprudently — nay, who do not 
interpose their authority to prevent them from heed- 
lessly and wickedly exposing themselves to unseen and 
unsuspected danger. Children who are indulged be- 
cause beloved, too often, like Dinah, become the shame 
and grief of their relations." 

Mothers, have you daughters, amiable, lovely, virtu- 
ous ? and do you permit them to mingle or associate 
with vicious or ungodly young men, to be gallanted by 
them, here and there, to this place and that place of 
amusement ? You do it at your peril ! Virtue once 
lost is lost forever ! One false or imprudent step is 
often everlasting for ruin, desolation, and damnation ! 
Look at the Five Points ; who is there ? "Who — in the 
lowest depths of degradation, on the brink of hell? 
These lost souls were once bright, shining, beautiful ; 
" ohve plants," may be, enjoying " sweet home." 



78 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

Parents, is not the blood of these lost ones on your 
sldrts? Did j^ou obey God in training them? "Was 
virtuous modesty consulted alivays — one of the purest, 
the most beautiful, lovely, charming of all graces ? 

modesty, how lovely thou art ! Angels are enam- 
ored at thy seraphic loveliness ! All heaven smiles 
complacently at thy enchanting beauties ! 

" Oh, what tender thoughts beneath 
Those silent flowers are lying." 

Modesty in a female is the crowning excellence of 
all excellence, the topmost stone of the graces super- 
lative. 

Mothers, beloved, do you think of this in rearing the 
tender thought, in costuming your little ones? Is 
modesty consulted first and always ? Are you .exceed- 
ingly, minutely, intensely cautious in all your inculca- 
tions, 

*' That no stain of sin may settle, 

Like the dust on wayside daisies, 

On their souls, to soil their sweetness ?" 



BEWARE OF THE TEMPTER. 

He lurks at every corner. 

Beware, as jou value the modest purity of your 
lovely ones, their welfare eternal : beware ]i02V you 
adorn them : beware of worldly conformity, of evil 
associations, worldly amusements. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 79 



GOLDEX RULE YIOLATIOXS. 

" This golden lesson, short and plam, 
Gives not the mind or memory pain, 
And every conscience must approve 
This universal law of love." 

Every deviation from the spirit of true benevolence, 
every selfish motive and action, is a violation of the 
golden precept. For all the law is fulfilled in one 
word : " Thou slialt love thy neighhor as thyself,'' But 
selfishness assumes a thousand different forms. We 
specify a few of the most glaring : 

1. Borrowing money, or any article, without return- 
ing it at the specified time. " Owe no man anything, 
but to love one another." 

2. Omitting to pay postage when writing on one's 
own business. 

3. Not giving due notice to continue or discontinue 
a periodical, at or before the time of the expiration of 
the subscription year. How often are papers returned 
— written '' Stop," on the margin — after having received 
several numbers on a new year, and not a farthing is 
received by the editor for these extra numbers ! 

This is not only a violation of the golden rule, but 
of the civil law, the law of periodicals : 

" Subscribers who do not give express notice to the 
contrary, are considered as wishing to continue their 
subscription." 



80 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

4. To smoke in a house, jDost-office, steamboat, car, 
omnibus, or any other travelling vehicle, to the an- 
noyance of others, is an open violation of the golden 
rule. 

It is well known that the fumes of tobacco to many 
persons, and especially to ladies of refinement and del* 
icate sensibihties, are exceedingly offensive, disgusting, 
sickening, prostrating ; and the individual who persists 
in gratifying his lust or depraved appetite at the ex- 
pense of the health and comfort of others, is not only 
ungentlemanly in his conduct, but supremely selfish. 

No man, by the law of love, has a right to poison 
God's pure, sweet atmosphere by the fumes of the 
stinking, poisonous " Indian weed." How many, call- 
ing themselves gentlemen, violate the laws of courtesy 
and benevolence in this matter ! How many gentlemen 
and ladies in our cities are constantly annoyed by 
these tobacco slaves ! One can hardly pass the streets 
or turn a corner, without meeting a puff full in the 
face ! Shameful ! 

" Good-breeding is tlie blossom of good sense ; 
The last result of an accomplished mind 
With outward grace, the body's virtue, joined." 

" Therefore, all things whatsoever ye would that 
men should do unto you, do ye even so to them." 



" To do justice and judgment is more acceptable to 
the Lord than sacrifice." Prov, xxi. 3. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 



81 





AISTATHOTH. 



Anathoth, some four miles north by east of JeruBa- 
lem. Joshua, xxi. 18. The birthplace of Jeremiah, the 
prophet. Jer. i. 1. The people rejected his words and 
sought his life ; but the Lord deliyered him and de- 
stroyed his enemies. " Therefore, thus saith the Lord 
of hosts, behold I will pimish them; the young men 
shall die by the sword ; their sons and their daugh- 
ters shall die by famine." Jer, xi. 22. They could not 
endure the faithful, pungent appeals of this outspoken 
servant of God. Whoever ventures to use the sword 
of God's truth against the sins of carnal and presump- 
tuous professors of religion, may expect to be hated for 
their faithfulness, how much soever they weep over 
them, pray for them, and labor for their good. 

4^ 



82 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

AGITATING AND AGITATOKS. 
AGITATE, AGITATE, AGITATE ! 

Keep on agitating ; cease not, day nor night. 

* Go boldly forth, and fear no ill, 

Though fierce oppressors rise ; 
Though trials gather thick and fast. 

And all the world be wrong : 
Onward, still onward to the last. 

And in the right be sti'ong." 

Agitation is tlie sonl, the life of salvation. Let agi- 
tation cease, and soon we are morally and spiritually 
dead- Where agitation ceases, lips are sealed against 
popular sins, sins in high places — then formality, moral 
corruption, spiritual death. 

Suppose the sea, the vast ocean, ceases agitation by 
stormy winds, ebbings and Sowings, how soon it stag- 
nates, spreads disease, corruption, and putrefaction? 
So with ministers and people, whole denominations 
lose then- vitality ; the life, the soul, the power, tho 
holy fire, become a stench, a hissing, a byword! The 
salt loses its savor. This is why so many have a name 
to hve and are dead ; they refuse to agitate, open their 
lips wide for God and his cause. Some of our most 
beautiful cities and villages are languishing, perishing, 
becoming moral pestilences, lazar-houses. The love of 
many waxes cold by ceasing to agitate, and the enemy 
rushes in like a flood. All this, and still more, is 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 83 

the result of oeasing to agitate, to cry aloud and spare 
not. 

Afraid to agitate ? Afraid to live ? Cease to agitate, 
you die the death. Where sin is, there must be agita- 
tion, else our world becomes a hell ! How was it in 
heaven when rebellion arose, the usurpation of Satan ? 
Agitation ! To arms ! to arms I All heaven is in up- 
roar. Lightnings flash ! thunders crcisli ! The ele- 
ments melt with fervent heat, till Beelzebub and his 
legion are hurled — cast down to the pit bottomless ! 

Sin was cast out of heaven by agitation. "T\Tiere sin 
IS, there is war — as in heaven, so in earth. Satan is 
now the same usurper, and nothing but continued agi- 
tp.tion will dethrone him, chain him to the bottomless 
pit. The patriarchs were agitators. Moses was an 
agitator, noble, glorious ! He set all Egypt in a flame ! 
Nor did he cease to agitate till God's people were set 
at liberty, and oppressive Pharaoh and his host were 
drowned in the depths of the sea. Slavery was ban- 
ished from England by agitation — Wilberforce, the holy 
agitator, leading the van. And nothing but agita- 
tion hurled the snaky monster fi'om our own nation. 
Praise the Lord for agitation and agitators. Lord, send 
them ! 

Moses was an agitator. Joshua, Elijah, Elisha, Jere- 
miah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Nehemiah, all who stood for 
God and the oppressed — a glorious band, mighty in 
words and in deeds. God wrought w^onders by these 
holy agitators. John the Baptist was a noble, whole- 



8i THE SWOKD THAT CUTS .* 

souled agitator, the forerunner of the Messiah, clad in 
camel's hair, with a leathern girdle about his loins, 
feeding on locusts and wild honey. He blew the 
trumpet of agitation long and loud. He set Jerusalem 
and all Judea on fire by agitation. This great and 
holy man, one of the greatest ever conceived or born 
of woman, went on agitating till he agitated into 
heaven. God took him in the very midst of agitation. 
Glorious departure ! What an abundant entrance into 
the everlasting kingdom ! This one noble specimen 
of agitation has stimulated millions on millions to agi- 
tate and go on agitatmg forever and forever. 

" Behold how^ great a matter a little fire kindleth." 
Oh, for such agitators ! 

Christ was the greatest of all agitators, from the 
time he entered the public ministry till he hung on the 
cross. It was Christ's agitation that saved a lost 
world, brought life and immortality to light through 
the Gospel. It was Christ's agitation that led to his 
persecution and crucifixion. He came not to send 
peace on earth, but a sword. Agitation led him to the 
cross, to glory at the right hand of the Father, where 
now he is worshipped by angels and glorified spirits, 
where every knee bows, of things in heaven, things on 
earth, crying. Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to 
receive glory and honor, forever and forever ! 

Millions on millions of unborn souls will bless God 
as eternity rolls on, for this one example of agitation. 
The apostles and primitive disciples were agitators. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 85 

Peter, after lie received the pentecostal baptism, agi- 
tated — powerfully ponred in the liquid flame of agita- 
tion, when three thousand were led to cry out, " What 
shall we do ?" He was bold as a lion before the San- 
hedrim, the murderers of the Lord Jesus. He feared 
not to charge home this blood-guiltiness upon them, 
come life, come death. This declaration of " all the 
ivords of this life' was followed up henceforth, till, like 
his blessed Master, he hung on the cross. Paul is 
another bright, gloiving instance of agitation. The 
very moment the scales fell from his eyes, and he ex- 
claimed, " Lord, what wilt thou have me do ?" he flew 
on the wings of agitation, midst idolatry, superstition, 
and will-worship, in perils by sea and perils by land, 
agitating and agitating, till he fought the good fight of 
agitation, finished his course, and received the crown 
of glory. All the holy martyrs of God were agitators, 
more or less. Luther, Wesley, Whitfield, Fox, Bun- 
yan, Baxter, were all bright specimens of agitation. 

Reader, are you agitating, fighting the good fight of 
faith, rising up against evil-doers, standing up against 
the workers of iniquity ? 

" Then, when the life-long strife is o'er, 
Thou shalt have rest foreyeniiore 
Within thy Father's home : 
Shalt join with all the blood-bought throng, 
To sing Christ's love — th' eternal song — 
Before the great white throne." 

Which will you choose ? To suffer affliction ^\dth the 



86 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

people of God by agitating, or enjoy the pleasures of 
sin for a season ? " Choose you this day whom ye will 
serve." Take the easy-chair, fold your arms, cease to 
agitate, and Satan will not trouble you. 

The prophet Elijah would not have been persecuted 
had he not agitated, used the fire and hammer of God's 
Avord against Ahab and Jezebel, the sins of the Church 
and the nation. John the Baptist, in all probability, 
w^ould have escaped decapitation had he not agitated, 
opened his lips wide against sins in high places, re- 
buked the incestuous Herod and his vile paramour. 
Had not Stephen agitated, been quite so zealous in the 
cause of his Lord and Master, his enemies might not 
have gnashed on him with their teeth, and stoned him 
with stones till he " fell asleep." Paul doubtless would 
never have met with such rough treatment from the 
hands of Demetrius the silversmith, who made silver 
shrines for Diana, had he not agitated, been a little 
more wise and let the subject of idolatry alone. Paul 
was a very rash man ! very precipitate ! The scribes 
and Pharisees would not have hated and persecuted 
Christ as they did, had he not agitated, exposed their 
wicked hypocrisy and time-serving. We have learned 
prudence since Christ's day. 

Many of the martyrs during the reiglT of terror 
doubtless might have escaped persecution and saved 
their hves, had they not agitated, been as wise and 
prudent as many at present are. Luther would not 
have been persecuted as he was, by popes and cardi- 



THE FIBE THAT BURNS. 87 

nals, had lie not agitated, exposed the awful wick- 
edness and corruption of the Eomish Church, the idol- 
atry, will-worshij^, and superstition of the mother of 
harlots, Babylon of old. How yery unwise ! Wesley, 
in all probability, would never have been persecuted as 
he was, had he bowed the knee to forms and ceremo- 
nies, winked at the abominations of a corrupt national 
Church — never advocated a holy life, denounced boldly 
and fearlessly intoxicating drinks, rum, and tobacco, 
the idolatry in dress, and, more than all, the sin of op- 
pression, man-stealing, '^the sum of all villanies." He 
agitated, made God's truth to flash lightnings, flash 
against chattelizing God's own image — very rash man, 
this same John Wesley ! So we might say of Baxter 
and Bunyan. The beloved Tyng, also, who ventured 
to open his lips, '' Stand for Jesus," in a pro-slavery 
church, was among the rash ones. The cause of all 
this trouble or persecution is preaching all the words 
of this life, agitating, laying the axe at the root of all 
sin, every sin. It is taking God's vv^ord, bringing it 
home to every sinner in the Church and out of it, as 
Nathan did to David : " Tliou art the man'' What ! 
rebuke a great and powerful king thus! How dared 
Nathan to do it ? How rash ! 

" Woe unto you when men shall speak well of you ! 
For so did their fathers to the false prophets." 

" He that f oUoweth after righteousness and m -rcy 
findeth life, righteousness, and honor." Prov. xxi. 21. 



88 THE SWORD THAT. CUTS : 



THE SONG OF FAITH AND LOVE, AND NO FIRE ! 

No " sword that cuts," no " fire that burns," nothing 
to probe the heart, disturb the conscience, kindle the 
soul, elevate, purify, sanctify. 

We may sing the song of faith and love, love and 
faith, till doomsday ; but what avail, if we regard in- 
iquity in the heart, indulge in pride, lust, folly, and 
fashion? Faith, unaccompanied with works of right- 
eousness, is '^ neither fit for the land, nor yet for the 
dunghill." " Wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith 
without works is dead?" John the Baptist understood 
his office, when he said, " Eepent ye, for the kingdom 
of heaven is at hand : bring forth fruits meet for re- 
pentance : every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit 
is hewn down and cast into the fire. Matt, iii. 10. 
Ezekiel understood what he was about, when he said, 
'^ Eepent, and turn yourselves from your idols, and turn 
away your faces from all abominations." Ezek, xiv. 6. 
Isaiah knew what he was saying, when he said, " Let 
the Avicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his 
thoughts : and let him return unto the Lord, and he 
will have mercy upon him, and to our God, for he will 
abundantly pardon." Isaiah, Iv. 7. "-Wash you, make 
you clean, put away the evil of your doings from before 
mine eyes, cease to do evil, learn to do well." Isaiah, 
ii. 16, 17. How can sinners and carnal professors be 
convicted of sin, except the truth is proclaimed point- 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 89 

edly, heart-searcliingiy ?^ The holy prophets and apos- 
tles, and the Lord Jesus Christ, came out boldly against 
sin specifically. 

Said Nathan to David, '' Thou art the man'' Said 
Peter to Ananias, " Thou hast lied unto God." Said 
the martyr Stephen to the Jewish council, " Ye have 
been now the betrayers and murderers of the Just One." 

Gospel fire is wanting; we may preach our soft, 
silky, stereotyped orthodoxy forever and forever, and 
where the outcry, " Lost, lost r " Lord, save ; we 
perish !" Li "Wesley's and Baxter's time, and that of 
the Tenants, Sinai was preached, the terrors of the 
law, hell-fire, the burning flames of fierce damnation ! 
What now, sinners — awake? seream for mercy? By 
hundreds and thousands ! For lack of this flint, fire, 
and hammer work — " the sv/ord that cuts, the fire that 
burns" — sinners sleep on till aroused by the scorching 
flames of eternal damnation ! 

The first thing to be done is to kill, then make alive. 
Very many teachers in Israel don't mean to kill any- 
body, therefore no one is killed. Paul's first business 
was to kill folks — everybody that ought to be killed — • 

* " If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our 
sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John, i. 19. To 
attempt to believe when the case calls for confession, is like sowing 
the seed when the fallow ground remains unbroken. The field may 
be large, and the show specious, especially while the ^now covers 
the ground ; and with souls thus deceived the winter generally lasts 
all the year — but the harvest will be one of tares, and not of wheat. 



90 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

then breathe into them the breath of hfe. Paul had to 
be killed himself before being made alive in God ; for 
he that is dead is freed from sin. Now, if we are dead 
with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with 
him. Eom, vi. 7-9. When Paul was thoroughly killed, 
dead, and buried to sin, and alive to God through Jesus 
Christ, he knew how to kill other folks, and there was 
no hesitation in doing this ; he went on and on killing 
and making alive, till he finished his course with joy ! 

No one is fully prepared for a watchman on the walls 
of Zion's top, till killed and made alive. Lord, send 
us these dead folks, those once dead and now alive, on 
fire ! Fire on fire, inside and out — fire from heaven, 
Holy Spirit fire ! Get nothing out of nothing, fire 
where there is no fire ? Who ever did ? Nothing is 
nothing ; fire is fire. To have fire outside — fire on fire, 
soul-kindlingly — there must be fire inside, the fire of 
heaven. Gospel fire, salvation fire, pentecostal ! 

Man in the pulpit, what are you doing ? Trying to 
get fire where there is no fire? Seeking the living 
among the dead? Stop, stop, right about, return to 
Jerusalem, tarry in the upper room till pentecostal day. 

" Oh ! idler in my field below, 

No gleanings hast tliou brought? 
Then thy profession was in vain, 
With no rich fruitage fraught. 

** Why, when I look for perfect fruit. 
Has it boiTie only leaves ? 
Depart ! thou cumberer of the ground, 
Who bound on earth no sheaves." 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS, 



91 




MICHMAS. 



MiCHMAS, a town of Benjamin, was nine miles north 
by east of Jerusalem. Neli. vii. 31. 

Here Jonathan and his armor-bearer performed won- 
ders. They climbed np between two steep hills or 
rocks, and boldly attacked and routed the whole army 
of the Philistines ! Reader, seest thou what faith can 
do? Jonathan had faith in God. He honored God, 
and God honored him. Hypocrites, time-servers, and 
men-pleasers often detect their indifference, even about 
the religion they professedly choose ; for as it has no 
practical energy upon them, a small matter induces 
them to dispense with the useless form. No warning 
or examples are sufficient to convince men of the folly 
and danger of trusting in the forms of worship, while 
they neglect the power of it. 



92 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

DEAD FOLKS AND FOLKS NOT DEAD; 

OR, 

KH^LING AND BEING KILLED. 

" Who would not wish to die like those 

Whom God's own Spirit deigns to bless — 
To sink into that soft repose, 
Then wake to perfect happiness ?" 

"Ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in 
God." Col iii. 3. 

Beloved reader, are you dead — dead and buried? 
This is the first thing, the all-important, the indispen- 
sable to life, life present, life everlasting. No man can 
live spiritually or gospelly as he ought, till he is dead. 
The first thing is to die, then to live. Paul Avas alive 
without the law once ; but when the commandment 
came, sin revived and he died. Bom, vi. 7. The Lord 
killed Paul on his way to Damascus : then he began to 
live — lived on and on, till he said, " I am now readv to 

7 7 t/ 

be offered," etc. 2 Tim, iv. 6-8. Paul could not hve 
or breathe the pure atmosphere of heaven till he was 
dead, and could say, " I am crucified with Christ." 

The reason why there are so many useless and fruit- 
less bra-nches in our churches, both in the ministry and 
in the membership, is, they have never been killed, 
slain, cut all to pieces by the law, the gospel, the sword 
of the Spirit. Self and selfishness in all their varied 
forms, windings, twistings, turnings, and overt iirnings, 



THE FIRE THAT BUENS. 93 

have not heen exterminated, destroyed, burnt up, root 
and branch, ground to powder, scattered to the four 
winds. 

" Ye are dead," says the apostle, " and your hfe is 
hid with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life 
shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in 
glory." Col. iii. 3, 4. "Knowing this, that our old 
man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might 
be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin ; 
for he that is dead is freed from sin. Now, if we be 
dead with Christ, we believe that we si all also live 
with him." Bom, vi. 6-8. 

Why do some ministers and editors close their hps 
on the evils of intemperance, the manufacture, sale, 
and use of intoxicating drinks, tobacco, the sin of lewd- 
ness, the violation of the seventh commandment, idol- 
atry in dress ? Is not the refusal to cry aloud against 
these and other popular iniquities, a sure evidence they 
are not dead to the opinions of men ? 

" Thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether 
they will hear or whether they will forbear." Ezeh ii. 
7. " He that saveth his life shall lose it." " Whoso- 
ever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny 
before my Father who is in heaven." 3Iatt. x. 33. 

" Take up thy cross, nor heed the shame ; 
Nor let thy foohsh pride rebel : 
Thy Lord for thee the cross endured, 
To save thy soul from death and hell." 

*' The fear of man bringeth a snare. Confidence in 



94 THE SWOBD THAT CUTS : 

an unfaithful man in time of trouble is like a broken 
tooth and a foot out of joint." Prov, xxv. 19. 

" Thus saith the Lord : Cursed be the man that 
trusteth in man and maketh flesh his arm, and whoso 
heart departeth from the Lord." Jer. xvii. 5. 

Why does that Christian brother, in giving to the 
poor or to any other benevolent cause, desire his liber- 
ality known ? "Why are donations to this or that so- 
ciety blazed abroad, published to the ends of the earth, 
with the donors name in gilt capitals ? Is it because 
he is not dead ? " Take heed that ye do not your alms 
before men to be seen of them, otherwise ye have no 
reward of your Father who is in heaven. Therefore, 
when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet 
before thee as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and 
in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Ver- 
ily I say to you, they have their reward. But when 
thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy 
right hand doeth, that thine alms may be in secret; 
and thy Father, who seeth in secret, himself shall re- 
ward thee openly." Matt, vi. 1-4. 

Oh, what a blessedness in doing things for God, and 
only for God ! 

Why is there an inkling and itching for empty titles, 
worldly honors, the applause of the great, a desire to 
be distinguished by the appellation D.D. and LL.D., 
in opposition to a positive prohibition ? " Be not ye 
called Rabbi, for one is your Master, even Christ, and 
all ye are brethren. Neither be ye called master, for 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 95 

one is your Master, even Christ. But he that is great- 
est among you shall be your servant." Matt, xxiii. 8- 
10. Are those who receive honor from men, love the 
uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the 
synagogues, and greetings in the markets, and to be 
called of men Eabbi, Eabbi, dead folks ? 

" How can ye beheve who receive honor one of 
another, and seek not that honor which cometh from 
God only?" Jo/m, v. 44. 

" Our God and Saviour, from Thy birth 
Thy footsteps to the cross we trace ; 
And all along Thy path on earth, 
We see Thee take the lowest place." 



A MERE CHILD. 



Whatevee the age or the learning of a minister may 
be, he is a mere child in spiritual knowledge, experi- 
ence, and qualifications for his office, without the bap- 
tism of the Holy Spirit. He certainly will, and must 
forever remain so. Until he knows what it is to be 
"fiUed with the Spirit," " to be led by the Spirit," "to 
be endued with power from on high" to fulfil his high 
and reasonable functions, he is a mere child, and by no 
means quaUfied to be a leader in the Church of God. 

A thousand times as much stress ought to be laid 
upon this part of a thorough preparation for the min- 
istry, as has been. 



96 THE SWOED THAT CUTS: • 







THE BIRTH OF CHRIST. 

• 
" Yes, the angel of God descended in glory, 

loving Redeemer, announcing Thy birth ; 

And voices seraphic took up the sweet story, 

And sang the glad tidings of ' peace upon earth/ 

^' O season most blessed ! again it returneth. 

With smiles and rejoicings we welcome its morn ; 

Ah ! cold is the heart from its gladness that turneth, 

JSTor hailest the day when our Saviour was bom.'' 

'^ And there were in tlie same country sliephercls 
abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by 
night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, 
and the glory of the Lord shone round about them ; 
and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto 
them, Fear not ; for behold, I bring you good tidings 
of great joy, which shall be to all people. For imto 
you is born this day, in the city of David, a Saviour, 
which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign 
unto you : Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling- 
clothes, lying in a manger." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 97 



HOW GOD KILLS FOLKS. 

Some he kills one way, some another. Some he kills 
at once, directly — strikes them dead on the spot ; others 
he kills by degrees, by inches or piecemeal, cuts off 
one limb of the old man, then another and another, till 
the life of self is out of them — utterly extinguished, cut 
up and dug up, root and branch. Saul was killed at 
once. Saul, when killed, was no more the son of 
Tarsus, but Paul, the apostle of Jesus Christ. 

This killing folks dead at once, at a single blow, is 
the best way, though very unusual. Saul's case is very 
remarkable, one of a thousand. 

Most persons going on a pilgrimage have to be killed 
little by little. Mortification begins in one place or 
member, and goes on till all the members or vital func- 
tions of self and carnahty are mortified — " Fornication, 
uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, 
and covetousness, which is idolatry. For which things 
the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedi- 
ence." Col, iii. 5, 6. 

The shorter wav to be killed is much better and 
easier than this lingering death, or dying by inches or 
piecemeal. But very many of God's " little ones" will 
not consent to be Idlled immediately, as Saul was ; 
they will not comply with the conditions — give up self, 



98 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

bow the stubborn Avill to the mild sceptre of King 
Jesus forthwith, come out from the world, be separate, 
and touch not the unclean thing. This bump of self 
and self-will, this unwillingness to forsake all for Jesus 
— to present the body a living sacrijS.ce, holy and ac- 
ceptable, to God, ¥/hich is our reasonable service — is 
the chief cause of this lingering, painful death ! God 
is just as ready and willing to kill folks right off now, 
as at any time. Indeed, he is waiting, earnestly desir- 
ing to kill whoever will be killed, without a moment's 
delay. There is gi^ace enough in store to kill every- 
body, even the whole world. Christ '* gave himself a 
ransom for all, to be testified in due time." 1 Tim, 
ii. 6. 

To kill some folks, God puts them into a furnace 
heated " seven times hotter than is wont," as the three 
men were in King Nebuchadnezzar's time. Others he 
puts into the lion's den. Daniel, with all his previous 
goodness, v/as net, }: erhaps, entirely dead till he came 
out of the den of lions. 

Job, though in a certain sense, was perfect, upright, 
a blessed man of God ; yet he was not fully killed till 
Satan was permitted to strip him of every earthly com- 
fort, and lay him prostrate in the ashes ; till he had 
passed through a terrible ordeal of affliction. Then 
Job was killed in very deed, saying, "I have heard 
thee by the hearing of the ear ; but now mine eye 
seeth thee. Wherefore, I abhor myself, and repent in 
dust and ashes." Job, ylii. 5, 6, 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 99 

*' In the furnace may God prove thee, 

Thence to bring thee forth more bright ; 
But can never cease to love thee — 
Thou art precious in His sight : 

God is vfith thee — 
God, thine everlasting Light.'* 

Isaiah was not quite dead, till after he saw the glo- 
rious vision of the Almighty in the Temple, and heard 
the angelic host cry, " Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of 
hosts — the whole earth is full of his glory." Then said 
Isaiah, " "Woe is me, for I am undone, because I am a 
man of unclean lips — and I dwell in the midst of a peo- 
ple of unclean lips ; for mine eyes have seen the King 
— the Lord of hosts. Then flew one of the seraphim 
unto me, having a Kve coal in his hand, which he had 
taken with the tongs from off the altar, and he laid it 
upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy 
lips, and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin 
purged." 

Then when the call was made, " Whom shall I send, 
and who will go for us ?" Isaiah was now ready for ser- 
vice, to fight the good fight, set his face like a flint — 
" Here am I," says he ; " send me." He was now 
dead — dead to sin, to the world — his life " hid with 
Christ in God." 

*' In perfect love we dwell in God 

And God in us : with peace and power 
We walk the way our Saviour trod, 
In sweet communion eveiy hour." 



100 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

To kill some folks, that won't be killed any other 
w^ay, God lays them on a sick-bed for a long time, a 
bed of languishment and disease — takes away their 
property, their kindred and dearest friends, a husband, 
a wife, a sweet, darling child on whom their affections 
were unduly placed ; dethrones their idols of silver and 
idols of gold — their household gods, the work of men's 
hands. *' They have mouths, but they speak not ; ej^es 
have they, but they see not. They have ears, but they 
hear not ; noses have they, but they smell not. They 
that make them are like to them ; so is every one that 
trusteth in them." Fs. cxv. 4-8. Every idol, no mat- 
ter how dear, long cherished, closely adhered to, must 
be demolished before death takes place in the soul. 

" TJioic slialt have no other gods hefore me." Not a 
few have to be left penniless, houseless, friendless, ere 
they consent to die. 

Again, God permits some to stumble to kill them, 
to deny the Lord that bought them. Peter was not a 
dead man till he stumbled, left to deny his Master, the 
Lord Jesus, with oaths and blasphemies. This is one 
of the most awful, terrible deaths to die ! Peter never 
forgot it. The Lord saw that nothing would kill Peter 
so soon and so effectually, as giving him up to Satan 
for a season to be sifted as wheat. 

Paul, on one occasion, delivered Hymeneus and Alex- 
ander unto Satan, that thej^ might learn not to blas- 
pheme. (See 1 Tim, i. 20.) The Lord deliver us^ if 
possible, from this dreadful way of being killed. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 101 

Finally, the finishing off business, the top-stone of 
this death to sin, the killing and being killed, is the 
baptism pentecostal, the tongue of fire. No one is 
thoroughly dead unto sin and alive to God through 
Jesus Christ our Lord, till full of faith and the Holy 
Spirit ; till rooted and grounded in love, able to com- 
prehend with all saints ^vhat is the breadth, and length, 
and depth, and height, and to know the love of Christ, 
which passeth knowledge, and filled with all the ful- 
ness of God ; till he can say as Paul said, " I am cruci- 
fied with Christ : nevertheless, I live ; yet not I, but 
Christ liveth in me : and the life which I now live in 
the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who 
loved me, and gave himseK for me." GaL ii. 20. 

" He that believeth on the Son of God hath the wit- 
ness in himself." 1 John, v. 10. 

" Hail, holy truth ! revealed by Him 
Who died on Calvary, that man might know 
And feel within his longing breast 
The peaceful kingdom of the Comforter 
Set up within his soul !" 



THE TONGUE UKBRIDLED— AWFUL ! 

The tongue, w^hich no man can tame, is nnbridled. 
" Behold how great a matter a little fire kindlefch." 
David said, " I will keep my mouth with a bridle." 
" Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth ; keep the 
door of my hps." It is the lips that do the mischief, 
that tell the secret. " Murder will out." 



102 



THE SV/ORD THAT CUTS: 







NAIN. 



Nain was a city of Palestine, where Jesiis restored a 
widow's son to life, as tliey were carrying liim out to 
be buried. 

"And it came to pass the day after, that he went 
into a city called Nain ; and many of his disciples went 
with him, and much people. Noav when he came nigh 
to the gate of the city, behold there was a dead man 
carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a 
widow ; and much people of the city was with her. 
And w^hen the Lord saw her, he had compassion on 
her, and said unto her, Weep not. And he came and 
touched the bier ; and they that bare him stood still. 
And he said. Young mf\n, I say unto thee, Arise. And 
he that was dead sat up and began to speak. And he 
delivered him to his mother." Luke^ vii. 11-15. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 103 

DEAD FOLKS AITO LIVE FOLKS. 

REMARKS AND INFERENCES. 

1. We see, from examining this subject, tliat there is 
such a thing as being killed, or dying before we can 
live. Som^e never die, consequently never live. 

2. Yie see the fearful doom of impenitent sinners, 
dead in trespasses and sin, the slipperj^ places on which 
they stand, the fiery billows rolling below. 

Instead of being dead to sin and alive to God through 
our Lord Jesus Christ, they are dead in sin, spiritually 
dead ; and unless aroused from this death by the thun- 
derings and flashings of Sinai, they die eternally the 
second death, " where the worm dieth not, and the fire 
is not quenched." " For the v/ages of sin is death ; 
but the gift of God is eternal life, through Jesus 
Christ." Bom. vi. 23. 

3. We see why there is so little done for Jesus in the 
Church and in the ministry ; why there are so few, 
comparatively, whom God can use with safety as in- 
struments of mercy in executing great and mighty 
works in the salvation of sinners. They are not dead. 
Were the Lord to crown their labors v/ith great suc- 
cess, they would soon be puffed up with pride, self- 
conceit, or complacency, think more highly of them- 
selves than they ought to think. What says Solomon ? 
" Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit ? there is 
more hope of a fool than of him." 



104 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

" Humble we must be, if to heaven we go — 
High is the roof there, but the gate is low : 
Whene'er thou speak'st look with a lowly eye — 
Grace is increased by humility." 

4. We see why so many fall away, lose their first 
love — they stop short of this death. 

5. We perceive, furthermore, the infinite importance 
of this death, of being killed immediately. Every new^ly- 
born soul should press on unceasingly for this death, 
resting not till the old man is slain, utterly destroyed, 
every inch of him, and his whole soul on fire with per- 
fect love. 

6. When we are dead we know it — no mistake. Paul 
says, " I know whom I have beUeved." 2 Tim. i. 12. 

7. Are we dead to the praise or blame of our fellow- 
creatures in the discharge of any public duty ? 

8. In bestowing our goods to feed the poor, or for 
any benevolent object, do we do it Avith a single eye, 
irrespective of men's good opinion, and solely to please 
God, not letting our left hand know what oiu' right 
hand doetli ? 

9. In preaching the word, standing for truth and 
righteousness, do we ever withhold or keep back any 
part of the price — shun to declare the whole counsel of 
God, from fear of losing caste, our good standing in 
society, our reputation for sound orthodoxy, or the loss 
of property ? 

10. Again, do we ever select our position in opening 
our lips against popular iniquities? Or do we stand 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 105 

boldly for Jesus in one place, while in another we 
shrink from duty, confer mth flesh and blood, bow to a 
sickty, conservative charity ? 

11. In a word, do we ever receive honor of men or 
one another, instead of seeldng the honor which cometh 
from God only ? These are some of the tests by which 
to judge our deadness to the world and the world to 
us. 0)ice more this death casteth out the fear of death. 
" God is love ; and he that dwelleth in love, dwelleth 
in God and God in him. Herein is our love made per- 
fect, that w^e may have boldness in the day of judg- 
ment ; because as he is, so are we in this world. There 
is no fear in love ; but perfect love casteth out fear, 
because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not 
made perfect in love." . 1 John, iv. 16-18. 



GOD'S MESSAGE— LOOK OUT! 

Did God, in sending forth his holy prophets, tell 
them to be cautious how they exposed certain popular 
sins ? Turn, if you please, to Isaiah, Jeremiah, Eze- 
kiel ; how readest thou ? Was Daniel the prophet 
mealy-mouthed in exposing the popular sins of his 
day ? Look and see. Also examine the case of the 
three men cast into the fiery furnace heated seven 
times hotter than it was wont ? Did Jesus Christ, m 
his commission to the apostles, caution them not to 
expose certain popular sins, to spare the Scribes and 
Pharisees, lest they give offence and suffer persecution ? 

5^ 



106 THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



THE DISCIPLE ON THE WING; 

OR, 

FOLLOWING JESUS WHOLLY. 

Imitating Jesus is liis special business. Not a day, 
an hour, a moment passes unimproved. His soul is 
on fire ! for deeds merciful, gracious, benevolent. His 
motto is — 

" Let not a day pass without its line ; 

Not one without a godly deed — 
Not an hour unblessed by thought divine, 

On fast, accusing wing be freed : 
Be each swift-moving moment fraught 

With praise to God and good to man, 
As we in the best of books are taught — 

The word of Him whom time did plan." 

Christ, to him, is all and in all. What's the result of 
this entire consecratedness, faithfulness in duty, contin- 
ual, living, out-spoken, practical witnessing for Jesus ? 

His own soul is kept constantly alive, on fire, joy- 
fully ; he adds grace on grace, makes rapid strides 
heavenward. The light around him shines brighter 
and brighter. He is remarkably successful in winning 
souls to Christ. Sinners are awakened and converted 
under his labors ; saints are edified, built up, strength- 
ened, purified, estabhshed ; the feeble-minded are com- 
forted, the w^eak supported. He feels a deep sympathy 
for the poor and oppressed, and is ever ready to " re- 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 107 

member those in bonds as bound witli them." His 
own peace flows like a river. How true the sentiment, 
" He that watereth shall himself be watered !" 



" Some angel guide my pen, while I draw 
What nothing else than angel can exceec 
A man on earth devoted to the skies !" 



" Whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he 
shall have more abundance ; but from him that hath 
not, shall be taken away even that he hath." 

It is the diligent soul that is made fat ; there is no 
promise of good to the unfaithful, the slothful, the fear- 
ful, doubting, and unbelieving. " He that endureth to 
the end shall be saved," 

Beloved reader, are you thus imitating Jesus — " go- 
ing about doing good," mounting up as on eagle's wings, 
in faith, hope, and love ? Has God, in very deed, puri- 
fied your soul by faith through the Spirit, given you 
hberty, holy triumph, filled you with joy unspeakable ? 
Watch unto prayer, go forward, labor for God, be dili- 
gent, persevering. Speak for Jesus ; open your lips 
wide in testimony ; witness definitely to the purifying 
ejBGlcacy of his blood to cleanse from all sin ; face the 
enemy ; stem the current ; " Be strong in the Lord, 
and in the power of his might." 

Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able 
to stand ; stand with your loins girt about with truth, 
having on the breastplate of righteousness, and your 
feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace ; 



108 THE SWOKD THAT CUTS : 

and above all, take the shield of faith, by which 

jou shall be able to quench all the iierj darts of the 

wicked. 

" Never fear ! ' Stand up for Jesus !' 
Speak to all of His sweet name, 
Tell them of His great salvation — 
All His wondrous love proclaim 1 
Peace and pardon, grace and glory, 
Through the precious, dying Lamb." 

There is no hope, no safety, no deeply-rooted, well- 
grounded love, no true, spiritual, joyful life, without 
this embodiment, this leaping into the path of duty, 
flying on WTngs of love, mercy, and truth. This divine 
activity is what keeps the breath of spiritual life in us, 
increasingl3^ Without imitating Christ in doing good, 
we perish, starve outright, become skeletons, moral 
pigmies. Multitudes on the Church-list are star^dng, 
this very moment. Lean ? Yes ; as Pharaoh's leanest. 
They dwindle, become weak, faint, sickly, moral dys- 
peptics. What, expect to live and breathe, be saved, 
receive a crown, a crown of glory — and not imitate 
Christ, follow his footsteps, live a holy, active, self- 
denying life ? What, a crown without fighting for it ? 
What kind of a crown will that be ? 

'' They that are wise shall shine as the brightness of 
the firmament ; and they that turn many to righteous- 
ness as the stars, forever and ever." Dan, xii. 3. 

" Shall we whose souls are lighted 
By wisdom from on high — 
Shall we to men benighted 
The lamp of life deny ?" 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 109 



WORK, WORK, WORK ! 

" We need only labor as hard as we can, 
For all that our bodies may need : 
Still doing our duty to God and to man, 
And Tve shall be happy indeed." 

Work with your hands, jour feet, jour tongue, your 
pen ; work out-doors and in-doors — work while the 
day lasts ; for the night cometh, in which no man can 
work. 

Work out your own salvation and the salvation of 
others, " for it is God that worketh in you, both to will 
and to do, of his good pleasure." 

Wake early, work early, work on and on ! Work 
with your might day and night. - 

" Dream not, but work ! Be bold ! be brave ! 
Let not a coward spirit crave 
Escape from tasks allotted !" 

Learn to be working Christians. " Be ye doers of 
the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own 
selves." When Christ found you he said, " Go, work 
in my vineyard." What were you hired for, if it was 
not to spread salvation ? What blessed for ? Oh, 
Christian friends, how little you live as though you 
were the servants of Christ ! How much idle time and 
idle talk you have ! This is not like a good servant. 
How many things you have to do for yourself ! ho^v 



110 THE SWOHD THAT CUTS : 

few for Christ and his people ! This is not like a ser- 
vant. 

Thousands breathe, move, and live — pass off the 
stage of life, are heard of no more. Why ? They do 
not a particle of good in the world ; no one was blessed 
by them as the instrument of their redemption. Not a 
word they spoke could be recalled, and so they per- 
ished ; their light went out in darkness, and they were 
not remembered more than the insects of yesterday. 
"Will you thus live and die, O man, immortal ? Live for 
something ; do good ; and leave behind you a monu- 
ment of vu-tue, that the storms of time can never de- 
stroy. Write your name in kindness, and love, and 
mercy on the hearts of thousands you may come m 
contact with day by day, year by year. You will never 
be forgotten. No ! your name, your deeds v/ill be as 
legible on the hearts you leave behind, as the stars on 
the brow of the evening. 

" Not enjoyment, and not sorrow, 
Is our destined end and way ; 
But to act that each to-morrow 
Find it better than to day. 

" Let us, then, be up and doing, 
With a heart for any fate ; 
Still achieving, still pursuing, 
Learn to labor and to wait." 



The desire of the slothful killeth him ; for his hands 
refuse to labor. Prov. xxi. 25. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 



Ill 




AN OLD TOWER AT KIHx\. 



An old tower at Eilia, callecl the Tower of Zaclieus, 
was near the first encampment of Israel at Gilgal, after 
crossing the Jordan in sight of Jericho. Here Joshua 
saw the man who came to be captain of the Lord's 
host. " And it came to pass when Joshua was hj 
Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and be- 
hold there stood a man oyer against him, with his 
sword drawn in his hand. And Joshua w^ent unto him 
and said, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries ? And 
he said, Nay ; but as captain of the host of the Lord 
am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the 
earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith 
my Lord to his servant ?" Joshua, v. 13, 14. 

What a beautiful example ! " Speak, Lord, for thy 
servant heareth." So let it be evermore. 



112 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



POPULAR— ARE YOU NOT? 

" Let the world despise and leave me — 
They have left my Sayiom* too ; 
Human looks and hearts deceive me — 
Thou art faithful, thou art true." 

Suppose you are not popular — what then? Were 
the holy prophets popular — Moses, Samuel, Isaiah, 
Jeremiah, Micah, Daniel, or Ezekiel, in their lifetime ? 
Was Christ popular ? Paul the apostle ? '' Away with 
such a fellow from the earth ; for it is not fit that he 
should live." Acts, xxii. 22. Popular in this world, 
and do your ivhole duty ? Popular, and rebuke sin, cut 
and slash on the right and on the left; pour in the 
liquid Jlame of God's truth against all sin, and be popu- 
lar ; little sins and great sins, sins of the flesh and 
spirit, national sins, State sins, city sins. Church sins, 
family sins, and secret sins ? Declare all God's counsel, 
as Christ did, as Paul did — and be popular ? What ! 
be popular and denounce popular sins, the poisonous 
weed, novels, romances, the aristocracy of the day, pride 
of fashion and folly, the witchcrafts and the Popedoms ? 
Be popular, and swing loose on God, fight the good 
fight of faith, and clear your skirts of blood. 

Was Elijah popular ? Look at him under the juniper- 
tree. Was Jeremiah popular? Behold him in the 
dungeon, sinking in the mire. (See Jer. xxxviii. 6.) 
Was John the Baptist popular ? Look at his head in a 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 113 

cliaro'er of tlie vilest of the vile ! Was Jesiis Christ 
popular ? Behold him in his mock robes, crowned Avith 
thorns, buffeted, spit upon, then on the cross. "Was 
Paul a popular man ? See him receiving forty stripes 
save one."^ Was Stephen popular ? Mark the stones 
that stoned him to death. Come nearer home ; take 
any of the faithful, holy ones that have clung to the 
cross, stood boldly for Eang Jesus, fought the good 
fight, washed their robes, made them white in the blood 
of the Lamb. 



TRUE COURAGE— WHAT IS IT? 

He that thinks, speaks, writes, and publishes truth 
only, without fear, favor, or speech of others, and that 
in kindness to all subscribers. If a portion of the pub- 
lishers of newspapers and books should form a league 
of brotherhood, to publish truth without respect to 
party, sect, or denomination, they would double their 
subscription list in a very short time. 

* In labors more abundant ; in stripes above measure ; in prisons 
more frequent ; in deaths oft ; five times forty stripes save one ; 
thrice was I beaten with rods ; once was I stoned ; thrice I suffered 
shipvrreck ; a night and a day in the deep ; in journeyings often ; in 
perils of water ; in perils of robbers ; in perils of my own country- 
men ; in perils by the heathen ; in perils in the city ; in perils in the 
wilderness ; in perils in the sea ; in perils among false brethren ; in 
w^eariness and painfulness ; in watchings often ; in hunger and thirst ; 
in fastings often ; in cold and nakedness ; sundries, care of the 
churches. 



114 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



DIE?— WHEN? WHERE? HOW? 

Die before your time, before you have finished the 
work assigned you — what God has for you to do? 
Such a thing never was, never will be. Kill you? who? 
wicked men ? devils — hosts on hosts ? The Lord is 
around about his people, as the mountains round about 
Jerusalem. " The angel of the Lord encanapeth round 
about them that fear him, and delivereth them." You 
may suffer for righteousness, be reviled, persecuted, 
scourged in the synagogues : w^hat righteous man living 
godly in Christ Jesus hath not ? Is the disciple above 
his master, or the servant his lord ? Die, before you 
have fought the good fight — finished your course ? Did 
the holy prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, the three 
men in the fiery furnace — did Paul die before his time 
— Peter, James, John, Luther, Wesley, Whitfield, Bun- 
yan, John Brown the martyr ? 

Not a sparrow falleth v/ithout God's notice. '' The 
very hairs of your head are all numbered." 

''If God be for us, who can be against us?" 

Bead the 27th Psalm, also the 46th and 91st. Fear 
not, therefore, ye faithful ones, ye servants of the Most 
High, " w^ho cry aloud and spare not." '' There is noth- 
ing covered that shall not be revealed, and hid that 
shall not be known. What I tell jou in darkness, that 
speak ye in light ; and what ye hear in the ear, that 
preach ye upon the house-tops." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 115 



BLESS EDITORS AND MINISTERS? 

Do you, reader, bless faithful, God-fearing, lioly 
editors and ministers, that stand firmly for truth, right- 
eousness, justice, mercy, love, and peace, — that wield 
the pen of life, soul, energy, fire on fire, — those that de- 
clare boldly, unflinchingly, "all the icords of this life f' 
set their faces like flints against all sin, every sin. 
Church sins, parental or domestic sins, ministerial sins, 
missionary sins, tract-society sins, sins in the Church 
and out of it, sins of the flesh and the spirit, of omission 
and commission, of thought, word, and deed ? Do jou 
lift up holy hands for those faithful servants of the Most 
High who swing loose on God, walk in white, fight the 
good fight of faith, pour in vividly the liquid flame of 
God's tinith, swear to their o^wn hurt and change not, 
come life, come death? Do you beseech God to keep 
them as the apple of the eye ; hide them under the 
shadow of His wings from the strife of tongues, from a 
wicked, hypocritical, dough-faced, time-serving age ? 

These are the salt of the earth, bright and shining- 
lights, cities set on hills, the Calebs, the Joshuas, the 
Isaiahs, the Jeremiahs, the Nehemiahs, the Pauls and 
the Peters. Pray for them ; hold up their hands. 



"The VvTcked shall be a ransom for the righteous, 
and the transgressor for the upright." Prov. xxi. 18. 



116 THE BWOKD THAT CUTS : 



AIMmG AT THE FIRE— FIRE ON FIRE. 

Our aim has been, 15, will he, firm, immovable, al- 
waj^s abounding to make everytliiug tell for good, for 
mercy, life eternal on the heart, the conscience, the 
e very-day walk ; to awake to new life, new hope, new 
joy. Our firm resolve, unalterable, is to strike while 
the iron is hot, make hay while the sun shines, do what 
our hands find to do with our might. Our motto is 
Bible, our method is Bible, our wisdom is Bible, our 
doctrines and precepts are Bible ; first repentance, then 
faith, faith that works by love and purifies the heart. 
Finally, on, on ! ON ! follow on, forgetting the things 
behind, and reaching forth to those before. We begin 
where God begins — in the nursery, in the cradle, at the 
early dawning of infantile life. " Seek first the king- 
dom of God and his righteousness," full salvation. 

Holiness now, holiness forever. Now is the time, the 
set time, the important, the momentous. All nature, all 
grace, the heavens above, the earti beneath, with 
united voice, cry out thunderingiy, '' Be ye holy, for I 
am holy." The present crisis is a crisis fraught 
immensely with things unheard of. The world is 
on fire. 

If ever holiness to the Lord was indispensable, the 
presenting the body with all its powers a living sac- 
rifice, a whole burnt-offering, it is now. 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 



117 







THE SHEPHERD AND HIS FLOCK. 



Turn to Psalm 23d. Beautiful ! beautiful! It's the 
business of the shepherd to remain with his flock, 
watch over it by night and by day ; see that none go 
astray, fall into the hands of robbers or wild beasts ; 
and to carry the lambs in his bosom. Many of them he 
calls by name, and they follow him whithersocTer he 
goeth ; but a stranger they will not follow. Christ is 
the good Shepherd, the Shepherd of our souls, who 
laid down His life for the sheep. Shall we not listen to 
His voice and follow Him, place ourselves under His 
vigilant and tender care ? 



118 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 



"THE SWORD THAT CUTS." 

The special object of the volume before us is to oc- 
cupy every inch with things that convince of sin, of 
righteousness, and of judgment — now. It's the little 
guns that do execution ; therefore w^e load and fire ! 
load and fire ! in quick succession. Is not this the 
only true and successful Gospel way, reader — first of 
all, to get our ow^n souls alive, on fire pentecostaUy, 
pressed down, running over — fire on fire, blazing out — 
then impart the same holy fire ? 

How was it with Ehhu ? could he help speaking ? 
He was ready to burst. " I am full of matter," said he, 
"the spirit within me constraineth me. Behold, my 
belly, is as wine v/hich hath no vent ; it is ready to 
burst, like new bottles. I will speak, that I may be 
refreshed." Joh^ xxxii. 18. This is the way for min- 
isters, editors, contributors, men in the pulpit and out 
of it to speak, because they must — the Holy Spirit giv- 
ing utterance. 

" Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is hberty." 
It is faith that does the w^ork, working by love, in 
answer to prayer — ^hving, burning faith, the tongue of 
fire, the live coal from God's altar. Then there are no 
long prefaces, circumlocution's, repetitions, prosy perora- 
tions, or scattering fires that do no execution. 

It is load and fire, load ^ndifire ! 

Will you try it, friends ? It's closet work. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 119 



MEANING SOMEBODY, HITTING SOMEBODY. 

"Mean me?" Yes, Mend, we "mean me,'' and we 
mean you also, if you are the guilty one. If you 
trample on holy time in any form, traffic in liquid 
death, distilled damnation, or the vile " Indian weed." 
We mean you in good earnest, if you write, pubhsh, 
buy, sell, or read novels, the light, foolish, trashy, non- 
sensical literature of the day, the " Leslies," "Harpers," 
"Godeys," "Ledgers," and the like — we mean you, 
and we intend to bring the sledge-hammer of God's 
truth to bear heayily on your guilty conscience. Once 
more, if you are a time-server, a prophesier of smooth 
things, " healing slightly," shunning to declare all the 
counsel of God, crying peace, peace, when there is no 
peace, we mean you emphatically. And we intend, the 
Lord helping, to say of you what God himseK says of 
you. And what is that? Hark! "Woe be to the 
shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves." "Woe 
unto you Scribes, Pharisees, hypocrites ! for ye shut up 
the kingdom of heaven against men ; for ye neither go 
in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering 
to go in." 

It is our business, and the business of every faithfal 
servant of God, to rise up against evil-doers ; stand up 
boldly against the workers of iniquity— to reprove, re- 
buke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine. 
-' For the time will come when they will not endure 



120 THE SA\OKD THAT CUTS: 

sound doctrine." " Tliou slialt in any wise rebuke thy 
neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him." 

Are 3'ou the guilty one, friendly reader? incorrigibly? 
We mean yoiu '' Thou art the man'' We bring down 
with a sledge-hammer's might the thunder claps of 
God's just, righteous, fiery indignation. We mean you, 
friend, in the Church or out of it, whatever your name, 
station, or office — king, queen, judge, priest, deacon, 
layman, corporal, or boot-black. Sin is sin, look out 
for breakers — sin is sin, and wherever sin is, little sins 
or great sins, sins in high places or in low places — 
there, ^ve,fire! Load — take good aim, fire! 

" Art tliou faithful ? then oppose 

Sin and wrong with all thy might ; 
Care not how the tempest blows, 
Only care to do the right." 



LOOK AT IT. 



We must be dead to what men or devils will think or 
say of us in the path of dutj^, in obeying God, hi keep- 
hig all his commandments, in declaring " all the words 
of this Ufe." 

" Take up the cross ; let not its weight 
Fill thy weak spirit with alarm : 
His strength shall bear thy spirit up, 
And brace thy heart, and nerve thine arm.'' 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 121 



OUR DAILIES— A WORD TO THE EDITORS. 

Belo^t.d Sii's, will you allow a single word fi'om a 
friend? We drop it kindly, respectfully, earnestly. 
Many of you we know personally — esteem highly. 
From some of you we have received special favors, 
special tokens of courtesy and friendship. Consequent- 
ly we feel doubly bound to be faithful, to admonish in 
the spirit of love. '^He that rebuketh a man, after- 
terward shall find more favor than he that fiattereth 
with the tongue." " Reprove one that hath understand- 
ing, and he will understand knowledge." 

Friends, we are giieved, deeply grieved, at your course ; 
your office is high, important, momentous ! It is in your 
power to wield an influence immense for public good. 
The issues of life or of death are in your hands. 

Were these leaves of yours, scattered broadcast over 
the face of the whole earth as they are, leaves for the 
healing of the nations, leaves of mercy and truth, the 
earth would soon blossom as the rose — angels would 
tune afresh their harps, " Glory to God in the highest, 
peace on earth and good-will to men." Tour daily 
issues flood the earth — the very atmosphere swarms 
Avith them, like the flies and locusts of Egypt."^ Enter 
the workshop, the store, the tavern, the hotel, the 
coffee-house, the grog-shop, the bakery, the bank, the 

* One editor boasts of having upwards of 100,000 names on his sub- 
scription list. What a sweep the devil has 1 

6 



122 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

clerk's ojffice, the barber's sanctum, what do you see ? 
a daily? heaps on heaps! Enter the dwelling-house, 
the shanty, the parlor, the kitchen, the outhouse, the 
stable. Go up-stairs, down-stairs, where you will — all 
about — in all the cities and villages throughout the 
land. What do you see ? 

Parents, children, and youth, of all ages and all 
classes, male and female, have free access to these daily 
issues. They are the literature — the food of the day. 
They are seized wdth avidity, hot from the press, 
grasped eagerly ; devoured, swallowed, masticated hast- 
ily and greedily, wholesome or unwholesome, poison- 
ous or otherwise ! 

Sirs, beloved, your responsibihty is tremendously 
fearful ! Are you not accountable for every particle of 
influence you put forth, for weal or woe ? "Will not the 
judgment-day reveal it ? " He that is not for me," says 
the adorable Saviour, " is against me ; and he that 
gathereth not with me scattereth abroad." Instead of 
diffusing light and life, are not many of you sow- 
ing the seeds of misery and ruin, scattering widely 
firebrands, arrows, and death ? 

Now, Sirs, the grave question is, What do these dailies 
of yours (into which our nation is moulded) contain? 
Some things good, valuable, things civil, commercial, 
political, moral, and religious, things necessary to the 
well-being of the body politic. What more? The 
theatre and amphitheatre, the circus and the obscene 
statues are advertised and puffed, in colors most glow- 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 123 

ing and sparkling ! Then the rum-pnffs, tobacco-pufts, 
the varied exliibition-pufts, down even to the Witch of 
Endor! The fakir of Siva, the puffs of soirees, ''vanity 
fairs," scenes of mirth, gayety, folly, and fashion. Polit- 
ical strifes, debates, and party politics, are next upon 
the cai^Det ; the heart-sickening, disgusting novel and 
love-ditties — the soul-polluting and soul-destroying 
romance, the obscene jest, the infidel sneer ! A novel, 
cii'cus or theatrical puff, horse-racing or prize-fighting, 
is often side by side with a rehgious notice or apho- 
rism !^ "What a curse ! Why are not the hottest thun- 
derbolts of God Almighty's wrath hurled instantly! 
This a Christian nation ! Need we wonder that 
God's wrath begins, even now^ to burn ? " Are these 
thy gods, O Israel?" And can it be that the contents 
of these dailies is the food for our rising age, the grow- 
ing, expanding intellect ? Will not this seed spring up 
in^ due time, thrive and yield a plentiful harvest ? Do 
we not see it even now ? Are not our cities and vil- 
lages waxing worse and worse daily, weekly, monthly, 
yearly? Intemperance rolls in like a flood! Blas- 
phemies belch from lips unholy and profane. Sabbath- 
breaking is becoming more and more daring and 
fi'equent. Theatres, circuses, obscene paintings, sta- 
tues and exhibitions increase as the seasons roll on! 
Novels, romances, light, licentious, and infidel readings, 
are taking the lead of the pure, the substantial, the 

*" Thou Shalt not sow thy field with mingled seed." Lev. xix. 19. 



124 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

holy. Our children and youth are becoming more and 
more rade, vain, volatile, fooKsh, and frivolous ; more 
and more idle, dissipated, obstinate, self-willed, impu- 
dent, vulgar, and profane ; more and more hardened in 
sin and every species of daring and outbreaking ini- 
quity ! Whence cometh these, and yet more ? need we 
a prophet's vision to foresee ? Come they not hence, 
chiefly, from this daily food?"^ Still the wheels of 
death and damnation roll on, on ! Can it possibly be 
that reUgious editors are pushing these cars of Satan 
— shaking hands with Beelzebub, even the prince of 
devils ? 

Only a few weeks since we saw in a weekly paper a 
puff of one of those trashy, infidel dailies, by an editor 
who professes to minister in holy things ! Is not this 
partaking of other men's sins, or sinning by proxy with 
a vengeance ! 

The scum of the pit bubbles up and bubbles up, over- 
flowingly. Parent, will you continue to suffer your rising 
charge to sip at these accursed fountains of pollution ? 
By-and-by you rue the day — drop the scalding tear ! 

"God shall bring every work into judgment, with 
every secret thing, w^hether it be good or whether it be 
evil." Eccles. xii. 14. 

" For their heart studieth destruction, and their lips 
talk of mischief." Prov, xxiv. 2. 

* " Cursed^s he that maketh the blind to wander out of, the way.'' 
Deut. xxvii. 18. 



THE FIEE THAT BtTRNS. 



125 




CAIKO. 



Cairo, one of the largest cities of Middle Egypt, is 
on the western side of the river NUe. Among aU the 
nations of antiquity, there is none more worthy of at- 
tention than Eg3-pt. The invention of alphabetical 
letters and the art of writing is generally attributed by 
the ancients to the Egyptians. Egypt was the mother 
of the sciences, as well as of the arts. The first im- 
portant discoveries in astronomy were in Egypt. The 
first objects of Egyptian worship, destitute of diAdne 
revelation, were the lummaries of heaven. They sup- 
posed the sun and moon to be the prmcipal and eternal 
gods, under the names of Isis and Osiris. 



126 THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



DEVIL'S DENS I GAMBLING HELLS I 

" He that soweth iniquity shall reap vanity ; and the 
rod of his anger shall fail." Prov, xxii. 8. Reader, 
you saw that gambling hell in Saratoga, and were hor- 
rified as you gazed upon it — stood aghast ! And did 
you call to mind the origination of this work of dark- 
ness, death, and damnation ? Did you think for a mo- 
ment that you were the guilty one that set this devilish 
machinery in motion ? that you were one of the chief 
:'nitruments in making these devil's dens — of kindling 
these fires that burn to the lowest hell ? ''Thou art the 
man f' and God holds you responsible for these souls, 
lost eternally through your instrumentality. We lay 
the sin at your door, and so does God. " The soul that 
sinneth, it shall die." 

" Who sows to the winds, the whMwind reaps." 

You are the gTiilty one that commends games of 
chance, worldly, sinful amusements ; amusements that 
kill time, dissipate thought, mind, and soul, turn away 
the heart from God, from Christ the ever-blessed ! 
"What is time ? Ask death-beds. Ask that queen in her 
last moments, who cried, '' Millions, millions ! for an 
horn', an inch of time !" Time — what is it ? 

" I asked a dyuag sinner, ere the stroke 
Of ruthless death hfe's golden bowl had broke, 
I asked him, What is time ? ' Time,' he replied — 
I've lost it — ah. the ti'easm-e !' and he died 1 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 127 

" I asked a spmt lost ; but oh, the shriek 
That pierced my soul ! I shudder while I speak 1 
It cried, ' A particle ! a speck ! a mite 
Of endless years, duration infinite !' " 

You are horrified at " whist." What the difference, 
pray, between " whist" and other traps of Satan ? 
What more bewitching and more sure to lead to these 
devil's dens than chess, checkers, fox and geese, and 
dominoes, which yon commend pubUcly ? These are 
stepping-stones to the gambling table \^ Many of the 
most dissolute, degTaded, wretched, abandoned, date 
their first movings rninward to these games, which yon 
term innocent ! How, then, can you — ^how dare you, 
vnih. Bible in hand, as a professed minister of Christ, 
put hand to this iniquity ? Shameful ! 

And how, we ask, can parents, especially rehgious 
parents, consistently permit their children to engage in 
them ? Time is lost, worse than lost ; precious golden 
moments, for which God will call them and you to ac- 
count. A seared conscience, a callous heart, a turning 
away from the path of hfe to the path of death, is sure 
to accompany these games, sooner or later. 

* Let every man avoid all sorts of gambling, as he would poison. 
A poor man or boy should not allow himself even to toss up a half- 
penny, for this is often the beginning of a habit of gambling ; and 
tills iTiinous crime comes on by slow degrees. 

" A little theft, a small deceit, 
Too often leads to more." 



128 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



HORSE-EACING AKD PEIZE-FIGHTING. 

1. HoRSE-EACiNG is Cruelty to the animal. " The 
merciful man is merciful to his beast." 

" A man of kindness to his beast is kind ; 
But brutal actions show a brutal mind : 
Remember, He who made thee, made the brute — 
Who gave thee speech and reason, formed him mute. 
He can't complain; but God's all-seeing eye 
Beholds thy cruelty — He hears his cry. 
He was designed thy servant, not thy drudge : 
And know — that his Creator is thy judge !" 

There is a doctrine that all the animals one abuses 
in this Ufe will have a chance to retaliate in another. 

If this be true, what torments must be endured by 
those who wdckedly and shamefully abuse this noble 
animal ! "What lashings and starvings, what kicks, and 
cuffs, and pinchings, with cold and hunger, are in store 
for them ! 

" I would not enter on my list of friends, 

the man 
Who needlessly sets foot upon a worm." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 129 

2. It is the worst species of gambling. It brings to- 
gether the offscourings of creation — idlers, loafers, tip- 
plers, swearers, Sabbath-breakers, fornicators, thieves, 
pickpockets, and " whosoever loveth and maketh a lie." 
What a hell, ivliat a hell ! 

3. They corrupt the whole region where they are 
permitted to live and breathe. What a burning, dam- 
ning curse horse-racing has been to that delightful, 
healthful spot, Saratoga ! and yet the citizeus continue 
to suffer this wicked abomination.^ 

A visitor to the Springs, speaking of the rat3e-course 
at Saratoga, says : 

" Without going into the enclosure to witness the 
sports, I have studied the outside developments of the 
past week, and no longer feel the slightest doubt that 
the race-course is an unmitigated device of the devil. 
A Christian has no more moral right to pay his dollar 
at the gate of a racing-ground, than he has to patronize 
a gaming-house or a brothel. Where one man attends 
to gratify an aesthetic taste for superb animals, ten go 
there for the excitement of betting. In fact, if the 



* The inference is fair and just, that the natural and usual ten- 
dency of riding-races is to turn a man into a scoundrel, and make. 
him utterly unworthy of confidence. It is not worth while to in- 
quire why this is the case. The fact is enough ; and that fact stamps 
an ineffaceable stigma upon all who belong to or patronize a race- 
course. They give their countenance to a fonn of amusement 
which, apart from all other ol jections to it, leads to an utter depi-a- 
vation of moral piinciple. 



130 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

theatre were stripped of* its sensuality, and the race- 
course of its gambUng, both of those popular institu- 
tions would soon go begging for patronage. Passion 
is the reservoir that feeds them both." 

Prize-fighting comes next in order — another of Sa- 
tan's devices ! 

It is painful that the newspapers still insult the 
better part of the pubHc with the revolting details of a 
prize-fight. The*whole business has no trace of any- 
thing generous, heroic, noble, or humane. It is more 
humiliating than a cock-fight ; it is more disgusting 
than the shambles ; it is more degrading and demoral- 
izing than a public hanging. The principals are bru- 
tish ; the spectators are mostly of the criminal classes. 
No honorable and intelligent man has or can have any 
real interest in such a scene ; yet it is as carefully re- 
ported as if it were of some service to society. Such 
reports directly pander to the meanest and worst pas- 
sions ; nor is it any excuse that they are news. There 
are many events which fall under that head, which no 
honorable man will reproduce. There are filthy details 
in many matters of even necessary publicity, for print- 
ing which there is no excuse. A man does not lose his 
moral sense nor his moral responsibility by becoming 
a pubHsher ; nor has he any more right to connive at 
the corruption of public sentiment because he is an 
editor, than because he is a private citizen. 

" If sinners entice thee, consent thou not." Prov. 
i. 10. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 



131 




MOSQUE OF DAVID. 



Mosque of Dayid, so called ; but now a Mohamme- 
dan place of worship. 

In yiewing this structure we are reminded of the 
sweet singer of Israel, who poured out his soul to God 
in strains angelic ! So full of holy fire was David, he 
often rose at midnight to give thanks, meditate on 
God's word, sing hallelujahs — glory, glory ! He would 
say, " Oh, how love I thy law ; it is my meditation all 
the day." 

Here lies the secret of all prayer, the gift of prayer, 
the spirit of prayer, the prayer of faith, energizing, 
soul-kindHng, soul-saving prayer, that mounts to the 
third heavens as on eag 's wings ! "Why was David so 
remarkably gifted in prayer? David's prayers were 
dictated by the Holy Spirit. 



132 THE SWOllD TPIAT CUTS : 



DOWN! DOWN! DOWN! 

Down? Yes, down with it, lower and still lower. 
It ought to go down, and will go down — everything op- 
posed to truth, righteousness, and love. " Every tree," 
says Jesus, "which my heavenly Father hath not 
planted, shall be rooted up." "Every branch in me 
that beareth not fruit shall be taken away." John, xv. 
2. " Other foundation can no man lay than that is 
laid, which is Jesus Christ. Let every man take heed 
how he buildeth thereupon." 1 Cor. iii. 10, 11. Sin- 
ners, that will not repent and do works meet for re- 
pentance, must go down, down! sink lower than the 
grave. False prophets and false teachers, without con- 
fession and turning to God with full purpose of heart, 
must sink dow^n, down, even to the lowest hell. " The 
hypocrite's hope shall perish." A corrupt press, every 
book, tract, and periodical, that has not for its object 
God's glory, virtuous purity, the soul's salvation, should 
go down in a twinkling lower than the grave — the 
sooner the better. The Lord will not suffer it. to live. 
Every paper, weekly, monthly, quarterly, blowing hot 
and blowing cold at the same breath, bowing and 
scrap ng to a corrupt public opinion, ought to die the 
death speedily. Any periodical that winks at sin, 
shrinks from publishing a full and free Gospel for fear 
of losing caste, or from a time-serving, man-fearing 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 133 

spirit, is a curso instead of a blessing. It's a leader of 
the blind, and if the bHnd lead the blind both will fall 
into the ditch. There are scores of so-called religious 
papers, that are merely skimming the surface of things, 
feeling their way, just as far in Bible reforms as their 
party, denomination, or the popular current will sustain 
them, and no further. Where there is one out-spoken, 
fearless, independent, uncompromising weekly or month- 
ly, are there not multitudes shunning to declare God's 
full counsel, conniving at sin, daubing with untempered 
mortar, healing slightly, reproving popular evils of the 
day no further than will sustain the pocket and a good 
reputation for orthodoxy ? 

This skimming the surface, or lopping the branches 
of the " Upas-tree," will not suffice, nor clear our skirts 
of blood. Our world is already flooded with sickly 
sentimentality, a kind of dish-water theology. It's very 
easy to sustain a periodical, a weekly or monthly, to 
keep it on the wing, by catering to a corrupt public 
taste, tickling the fancy and softening down the Gospel to 
meet the popular ear. But come out, be separate, swing 
loose on God, clear the track, slay on the right hand 
and on the left, and see if there be not war in the 
camp, and the cry, " Hands off." Satan will not trouble 
us much if we don't trouble him or cross his path. 'But 
load and fire, load and jire^ make inroads upon his ter- 
ritory, and see if the bottomless pit don't bubble, and 
the fiery darts of hell are not hurled ! ^' I came not to 
send peace on earth, but a sword," saith Jesus. " If 



134 THE SWORD THAT OUTS: 

any man will come after me, let him deny himself, take 
up his cross and follow me." 

** To conquer is a glorious thing : 
To dare in mind, in heart, in deed ; 
'Tis great 'tis glorious to succeed !'" 

" What is not of faith is sin." " Though we, or an 
angel from heaven, preach any other Gospel than that 
which we have preached to you, let him be accursed." 
Oal, i. 8. '' "While men slept, the enemy came and 
sowed tares among the wheat and went his way." On 
to victory — on ! 

*' The veriest coward upon earth 

Is he. who fears the world's opinion; 
Who acts with reference to its will, 

His conscience swayed by its dominion." 

That man is not a man who is wanting in nerve, in 

the fear of God, in holy principles, stoutly to resist 

every innovation on his moral rights and the rights of 

his brethren, who dare not be true to his enlightened 

convictions, though the heavens fall to rise no more. 

A man, to be a true man of God, must dare io be* in the 

minority, dare to be despised and rejected of men, dare 

maintain his rightful position, though it cost him his 

life ! 

" Dare to be right ! Dare to be true ! 
Other men's failures will not excuse you ; 
Stand by your conscience, your honor, your faith ; 
Stand like a hero, and battle till death." 

If you desire real prosperity, stand firm for the right; 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 135 

if you desire real peace, stand firm ; if yon desire the 
nation to rise to superior grandeur, stand firm ; if you 
sympathize with the whole world, now groaning and 
struggling for freedom, stand firm ; if you desire God's 
blessing, stand firm. Stand by your principles ; stand 
by those who will be strengthened by your example, by 
those who have long been co-workers with you in the 
cause of human rights, by those who have been pray- 
ing, " Thy kingdom come." 



PRACTISE WHAT YOU PREACH. 

"Physician, heal thyself." "Thou, therefore, that 
teachest another, teachest thou not thyself?" Be con- 
sistent. " Consistency is a jewel." "We hear severe 
admonitions against pride in dress, the wearing of 
jewelry, gay artificials, &c. This is right. God de- 
nounces these tinkhng ornaments — the exhibition of 
pride, the outgoings of a vain and corrupt heart. 

But what is your costume, sister ? Far be it from 
you to adorn your person with jewehy — golden ear- 
rings, finger-rings, breastpins, &c. ; but what are the 
materials of your dresses, shawls, bonnets, &c. ? Are 
they not of the finest texture, the most costly? Is this 
expenditure on your person consistent with a meek and 
humble follower of Christ ? one bound to glorify God 
in body and in spirit ? Should not those who reprove 
others be examples of Gospel simplicity, pmity, and 
economy? 



136 THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



BLIND FOLKS AND DUMB FOLKS. 

" Then was brouglit unto him one possessed witE a 
devil, blind and dumb, and he healed him, insomuch 
that the blind and dumb both spake and saw." Matt. 
xii. 22. 

Blind and dumb ? Most assuredly, friends, you are, 
if you deny the Lord that bought you ; and if the blind 
lead the blind, both will fall into the ditch. 

" Would ye once wear the starry crown ? 
Then bear the cross along. 
And would you die as Christians die ? 
Then live as Christians live. 

Multitudes are now blind that once could see, that 
once had their eyes open. Instead of being able to 
say with the blind man in the Gospel, ''Whereas I 
was once blind, now I see," it is evident that whereas 
they once saw, now are they blind, judicially blind ; a 
blindness most fearful, lamentable ! 

Look at the writings and pulpit ministrations of 
some ministers and editors some ten or twenty years 
ago. The spirit of Bible reform was then manifested, 
a holy unction, a conscience tender as the apple of the 
eye ; they rose above a man-fearing spirit, a time- 
serving policy. God was evidently with them in very 
deed ; they had power from on high ; God crowned 
their labors marvellously. Mark the writings and 



THE riEE THAT BUENS. 137 

preachings of these same pubhc teachers — where now 
the flash of holy zeal, the fire pentecostal ? Alas, alas ! 
what a falling off, what a sad, lamentable degeneracy ! 
The form of godliness is still kept up ; but where the 
soul, the life, the power — the flint, the nail, the ham- 
mer? They are evidently shorn of their strength. 
Wherefore ? They have hewn out to themselves cis- 
terns, broken cisterns that hold no water. They have 
gradually yielded to the tempter, lowered the Gospel 
standard, bowed the knee to the popular voice. The 
Holy Spirit is grieved, takes his flight ! 

Christ says, " He that findeth his life shall lose it ; 
and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it." 

" The body may retain its form long after its vitality 
is fled . . . the form of devotion may be retained long 
after the spirit has departed. 

" Consider the history of Solomon. The God of 
nature gave him wisdom above all men. The God of 
grace gave him another heart, and in a special sense 
the Lord loved him. Yet, strange to say, ' it came to 
pass lolien Solomon was old,' that ' his heart was turned 
from the Lord God of Israel.' He yielded to a com- 
promising spirit — the sin of old age. The altar and 
worship of Jehovah he never thought of forsaking ; but 
in sinful compliance to the wishes of his wives, he gave 
countenance and support to the worship of false gods. 
' And the Lord was angry with Solomon.' 

" How many, who in their younger days were noted 
for their uncompromising hostility to the fashionable 



138 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

follies and vanities of the world, find reasons, when 
their children come upon the stage of action, in favor 
of practices which, when they walked in the light of 
the Spirit, they strongly condemned ! What a pitiable 
sight, to see men in old age spending the remnant of 
their days in pulling down the edifice, for the erection 
of which they devoted the strength of thcK manhood !" 

" Truth is earnest, truth is fearless, 
Ever dwelling in the skies." 



PUBLIC OPINION. 

Get the majority on your side and you are safe, let 
your cause be ever so bad. Give five hundred dollars 
to a public institution, let the fact be spread abroad in 
the newspapers, and you will have the name of a pub- 
lic benefactor ; if at the same time you withhold ten 
thousand dollars justly due to a family of orphans, the 
gift will set the matter right, and you will not be re- 
proached. If you are poor, and the public are stran- 
gers to the fact, the sting is removed. If you are 
wealthy, and nobqdy knows it, you derive but little 
pleasure from our riches. A beautiful face concealed 
beneath a veil, secures no admirers. A boot may con- 
ceal a cloven foot. Public opinion is a curious jade. 
The question. Is it right ? is seldom asked ; but quite 
often the question, What will people say ? 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 139 



A BURNT CONSCIENCE! 



What is it ? 

A conscience burnt out by sinning against light and 
knowledge, resisting the influences of the Holy Spirit ? 
Reader, do you know what a burnt or seared con- 
science is ? one so perfectly callous, given up to hard- 
ness and blindness, that the most solemn and awful 
truths of God's word leave no salutary impression ? 

" My conscience don't condemn me," says a con- 
science-seared sinner or an open backslider from God. 

Indeed, friend, your conscience don't condemn you, 
and yet you commit sin, do things you ought not, and 
leave undone many things you ought to do. If your 
conscience is not enhghtened and educated on Bible 
principles, under the influences of the Holy Spirit, it is 
not a safe guide, it is unsanctified, unholy. 

Saul said, " Yerily, I believed I ought to do many 
things contrary to the name of Jesus ;" so he followed 
the leadings of his conscience to deeds of persecution 
and blood-guiltiness ; yet he felt free in all this, till the 
Spirit of God shone on his heart. Then, and not till 
then, was it safe for him to follow his conscience. The 
conscience that will allow us to indulge in anything 
God's word does not permit, must be wrong. The 
Bible is the rule of action ; yet many do things it for- 
bids. Sister in Christ, thou that fosterest pride by 
putting on things that God's word strictly forbids, how 



140 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

readest thou ? 1 Peter, iii. 3 ; 1 Tim. ii. 9 ; Isaiah, iii. 
16-25. In putting on these things, you are advertis- 
ing the world in characters as visible as if they were 
written in large capitals, " I am living in disobedience 
to the claims of God'' 

Brother, thou that makest hard bargains with thy 
neighbors, you know you have property in your pos- 
session that honestly belongs to your neighbor ; but 
you say, " My conscience does not condemn me." The 
command from the lips of your Eedeemer is, " As you 
would that men should do unto you, do ye even so 
unto them." Then do not allow your conscience to 
remain quiet w^hen God condemns you. Like a true 
man, be honest with yourself. Would you be willing 
to stand at the judgment-bar this day, with one dollar 
in your pocket that you know does not belong to you ? 
Best assured, that it would shut you out of heaven ! 
Is not the saying of the prophet true — " as with the 
buyer, so with the seller" — are they not loth guilty 
before God ? Then repent, and restore, if it be in your 
power to do so — if not fourfold, make that good wherein 
you have wronged by mistakes or otherwise. Be hon- 
est in your business transactions ; deal justly with all 
men ; pay all dues, even the smallest. Make con- 
science of strict punctuality in little things. Promise 
not a farthing without liquidation at the very time. 
Pay off your bills, little ones and great ones. " O^ve 
no man anything but love." 

Very many go on nettles all the time, restless, con- 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 141 

science-searedly, simply from little aberrations, small 
deviations in business matters. '' The little foxes de- 
stroy the tender vines." 

*' A little theft, a small deceit, 
Too often leads to more." 

" He that is faithful in that which is least, is faithful 
also in much ; and he that is unjust in the least, is un- 
just also in much." 

. " Little things — aye, little things, 
Make up the sum of hfe." 

How frequently do we hear Sabbath-breakers, rum 
and tobacco sellers, drinkers, smokers, and chewers, 
novel-sellers, puffers, and readers, and others tipped 
off in jewelry and fashionable finery, say, '' My con- 
science don't condemn me !" Fearful thought ! Mar- 
vellous that even professors of religion can live in open 
violation of a plain command of the Bible, without any 
apparent remorse or shrinking! "What an awful, fear- 
ful state of mind — well-nigh unto burning ! 

Conscience is a very unsafe guide when steeped in 
rum and tobacco, stifled with the lust of the flesh and 
the pride of life. Conscience now-a-days, one might 
suppose from the appearance of things, is made of 
india-rubber. 

" God is not mocked : for whatsoever a man soweth, 
that shall he also reap." Gal, vi. 7. 

" Divers weights are an abomination unto the Lord ; 
and a false balance is not good." Prov. xx. 23. 



142 



THE SWOKD THAT CUTS 




A YOUNG LADY AT THE TOILET. 



FOLLY AND FASHIOK 

Spend as little time as possible at the mirror, adorn- 
ing and admiring tliy person."^ This habit of viewing 
thy pretty face in the mirror increaseth thy vanity, thy 
pride, thy folly, thy fashion. '' The pride of thy heart 
hath deceived thee." 

" Pride goeth before destruction — before a fall." A 
virtuous, heavenly mind will charm when personal 
beauty has departed forever ! 



* Beauty gains little, and homeliness and deformity lose much by 
gaudy attire. Lysander knew this was true, and refused the rich 
garments that the tyrant Dionysius proffered to his daughters, say- 
ing, '' They were fit only to make unhappy faces the more remark- 
able." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 143 

ALL IS NOT GOLD THAT GLITTERS. 

HINTS TO GAUDY FEMALES. 

" A goldfinch there I saw, with gaudy pride 
Of painted plumes." 

One of the most serious evils that exist in society at 
the present time, and one that has a great tendency to 
bring about financial crises, bankruptcies, defalcations, 
mercantile dishonor, and a withdrawal of that con- 
fidence, without which the wheels of commerce are 
clogged, and the course of trade impeded, is the insane 
passion for dress and gaudy ornaments which is mani- 
fested by a class of American ladies, and is fostered by 
their husbands and fathers. The evil has come to be of 
such magnitude, that the press here and there is lifting 
up its voice against it. May it be potential in arrest- 
ing the attention of ladies, and lead them to a thorough 
reform — a reform which may save their husbands and 
fathers from bankruptcy, and haply from guilt ; which 
may be made by them without sacrifice ; w^iich will 
add to their attractions by taking from their meretri- 
cious ornaments, and which will promote their peace 
of mirid. 

The sad history of mercantile disaster and of dishon- 
esty in high places, which the history of the past few 
years has disclosed, is full of warning, if it is not also 
of reproach, to those ladies who have lived beyond the 
most ample means, to gratify a vanity which is un- 



144 THE SWOBD THAT CUTS: 

wortliy of them. Ladies make a great mistake when 
they suppose they add to their charms by vieing with 
the plumage of the gaudiest bird in their af)parel. 

'' To gild refined gold, to paint the lily, 
To throw a perfume on the violet. 
To smooth the ice, or add another hue 
Unto the rainbow, or with taper-light 
To seek the beauteous eye of heaven to garnish, - 
Is wasteful and ridiculous excess." 

But these are no more wasteful or ridiculous than 
for women to pile the price of a year's income upon 
their backs. We once knew a man, who called upon us, 
his countenance beaming with pleasure, to exhibit a 
wonderful invention of his own. He produced a 
bouquet of rare and beautiful flowers, which he had 
liberally spangled with gold and silver leaf. To the 
lover of nature and the beauties of the garden nothing 
could be more repulsive. We look upon a superfluity 
of dress and ornament on a woman with much the 
same feeling. " Loveliness needs not the foreign aid 
of ornament, but is, when unadorned, adorned the 

most." 

" Modesty, like diamonds, shines most fair, 
More worth than pearls or rubies are, 
More rich than gold or silver coin — 
Oh may it always on us shine !" 



"A wise man scaleth the city of the mighty, and 
easteth down the strength of the confidence thereof," 
Prov. xxi. 22. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 14:5 



THE CHUECH HELPING THE WORLD. 

"the church AXD world AMALGAilATE" — THE WORLD CON- 

YERTLSTG THE CHURCH, NOT THE CHURCH THE WORLD 

— PROJECTING CHRISTIANITY INTO AMUSEMENTS. 

The peculiarity of tlie true Christian is love for 
others' welfare, temporal and spuitual. "Look not 
every man upon his own things, but every man also on 
the things of others." Phil. ii. 4. 

Self-denial is the law of the Christian, the law by 
which the disciple of Christ, through the discriminating 
action of his Christian conscience, uses his hberty not 
to injure, but to bless others. Let us apply the law to 
the question of amusements. No spiritual person 
speaks of the theatre, card-table, opera, circus, and 
race-course as proper places of amusement for Christian 
men and women ; and yet, multitudes of professed be- 
lievers are found at these places. 

Wherever you plant the theatre and opera, there in- 
stantaneously sprouts a crop of gambling-hells, drinking- 
saloons and brothels : and so it is with the race-course ; 
all the Satanic centres of the metropolis are stirred into 
a carnival of joy at the coming on of the races, and 
pour in a full tide of damnation upon the country. 

Again, look at family amusements. We say to 
children, " You may play at Jack Straws and marbles, 
and fox and geese, but bew^are of dominoes." " The 
young may indulge in croquet, but do not touch bil- 

7 



146 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

liards." Are these distiuctions satisfactory? A recent 
writer has forcibly said on this very subject, " Pray, 
what is the difference between cnes and maUets, be- 
tween wooden balls and balls of ivory, between green 
baize and green grass?" The same of games when 
cards are used. A game of authors is considered quite 
a Christian family amusement, w^hile cards, on which 
are painted diamonds and spades, are banished. Is 
there really any difference between cards with pictures 
of kings and queens, and cards with Dr. Busby and 
Doll, the dairymaid, painted on them? But may a 
Christian indulge in both these games with equal im- 
punity ? Just here comes in the action of the unerring 
Christian law^ — the moral effect of the indulgence as 
measured by the actual or possible involvements of its 
influence. Why should you ask the world its opinions 
on these matters? What care you for the world's 
decisions ? We are speaking to young Christians and 
to disciples who really want to get to the Christ- 
standard, and are willing to stand by it. 

Let us bring, then, this whole matter to the true 
practical test. The Christian law is this, " Use your 
liberty so as not to injure, but bless your felhtv-man,'' 
Religion is something you cannot put into ivory 
balls, dominoes, gaming-cards, or fox and geese, nor 
checker-boards ; religion is a leaven that is put into 
dead, worldly souls, and there works until the whole 
being is leavened, until that mighty Christian law 
sways the whole realm. It is a perilous thing for a 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. ' 147 

Christian to see how far he can go and not compromise 
his loyalty to Christ. The world-spirit is perpetually 
pushing its own customs and social tests upon Chris- 
tians, and demanding compromise and concession, and 
when they will not yield, it raises the cry of bigot — 
Puritan. By this cry, weak and half-hearted Christians 
and professors of religion, who hve away up in the attic 
and feed away down in the basement of their natures, 
and who dread the verdict of fashion more than the 
voice of God, are drawn into the whirlpool of an all- 
engulfing worldliness. 

We repeat, injure no soul by your liberty ; practise 
self-denial for the good of others. 

If dancing, cards, checkers, fox and geese, dominoes, 
croquet, bagatelle, do not injure you, what now ? If, 
indeed, you would not be damaged in your spirituality 
in the practice of the whole round of the fashionable, 
giddy, and trifling amusements, consider to whom and 
how many your example would be a license to social 
dissipation, and who would in their very soul call you a 
hypocrite and your Christianity a lie. 

There is a gTowing tendency among Chjistian pro- 
fessors, men and women, to lower the standard of 
Christian duty. Christ's doctrine of self-denial is so 
explained as to tolerate practices which the Church 
formerly believed it condemned. Latitudinarianism, 
not to say antinomianism, is on the increase. A morn- 
ing attendance at Church, followed by a sumptuous 
dinner, a nap, and an evening of worldly conversation, 



148 THE SWOKD THAT CUTS : 

is thought to be a satisfactory observance of the Chris- 
tian Sabbath. The use of wine, not to say strong 
liquors, at the dinner-table, is not unfrequent in so- 
called Christian homes. Attendance at the opera or 
theatre is no more classed among interdicted amuse- 
ments. The sons and daughters of Christian house- 
holds are to be trained in dancing-schools, permitted to 
give juvenile balls, taught to play checkers, chess, bil- 
liards, and even cards. Opposition to these indul- 
gences is pronounced Puritanism, and Christianity is 
to be made so tolerant that such time-honored phrases 
as self-crucifixion, seK-denial, keeping the body under, 
spiritually-minded, and the like, are to be cast out of 
the Christian vocabulary. Piety is no longer to be 
armor-clad, armed, and bivouacked in the battle-field ; 
but is to be clothed in gay dressing-gown, slippered, 
lodged in well-stuffed easy-chair. The road to heaven 
is to be travelled in railway cars, with ample accom- 
modations for the world, flesh, and the devil, in suitable 
portions of the train. 

That this spirit of self-indulgence is cherished and 
defended in and by numerous Christian famihes, is un- 
deniable. That it is increasing is equally true. That 
it will become general, if not sternly checked, we greatly 
fear. This self-indulgent spirit is contrary to the spirit 
and genius of Christianity. The purpose of Christian- 
ity is to bring the animal, the intellectual, and affec- 
tional nature of man into subordination to the moral 
and spiritual. Its grand aim is to make Jesus Lord of 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 149 

the soul and the body. Hence everything which hin- 
ders the cultivation of the moral and spiritual nature is 
hostile to the purposes of Christianity. But the amuse- 
ments and indulgences referred to are hindrances to the 
unfolding of the divine life. Who denies this ? Is the 
atmosphere of the theatre, opera-house, or ball-room 
favorable to piety ? Do the fumes of wine excite love to 
God and man? Does a man grow holier by eating 
sumptuous dinners, or by sleeping and trifling away his 
hours on Sunday afternoons? Nay, verily. These 
things tend rather to strengthen that stubborn self 
which the Gospel called upon its followers to crucify, to 
make the body master of the soul, and to grieve the 
Holy Spirit of God. 

" Love not the world, neither the things that are in 
the world, for if any man love the world, the love of the 
Father is not in him ; for all that is in the world — the 
lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride 
of life — is not of the Father, but of the world. And the 
world passeth away, and the lust thereof, but he that 
doeth the will of God abideth forever." 



Travellers, carry your Bible, and read it. Have a 
place for prayer, and visit it. Try to do some good 
every day. Find a place in your trunk or carpet-bag 
for tracts and good books to lend or distribute. Make 
no concealment of Christian hopes. 



150 



THE SWOBD THAT CUTS 




GREAT ZIDON. 



Great Zidon was founded by Zidon, the eldest son 
of Canaan. Gen. x. 15. 

Great Zidon fell to tlie lot of Aslier. Josh, xi. 8. It 
is, at present, like most of the other Turkish towns in 
Syria, dirty and full of ruins. 

It incurred the judgments of God for its sins. Ezek. 
xxviii. 21-24. 

" Woe unto the world because of offences ! for it 
must needs be that offences come; but woe to that 
man by whom the offence cometh ! Wherefore, if thy 
hand or thy foot offend thee, cut it off, and cast it 
from thee : it is better for thee to enter into life halt 
or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet 
to be cast into everlasting fire." Matt, xviii. 7, 8. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 151 

AN AGE OF LIARS, OR A LYING AGE. 
" Dare to be true ; nothing can need a lie." 

*' Wherefore, putting away lying, speak every man 
truth with his neighbor." Eph. iv. 25. 

Cheating and lying, lying and cheating. It is cheat- 
ing here, cheating there ; it is lying here, lying there. 

" A little theft, a small deceit, 
Too often leads to more." 

" He that is faithful in that which is least, is faithful 
also in much ; and he that is unjust in the least, is un- 
just also in much." 

Lies are of various kinds, of various degrees of ag- 
gravation. There are black lies and white lies, lies of 
vanity, pride, ambition, flattery, convenience, interest, 
fear, wantonness, cruelty; lies of first, second, and 
third rate mahgnity. There are also passive or prac- 
tical lies — lies acted out. Point your finger in a wrong 
direction to an inquiring traveller — you give him the 
lie. 

Again, some are habitual liars — lie at nearly every 
breath ; like the common swearer — he swears, and knows 
it not. 

" A righteous man hateth lying ; but a wicked man 
is loathsome, and cometh to shame." Prov, xiii. 15. 

" Lying is my trade," said an auctioneer ; " I live by 
falsehood and deception, it is my meat and drink ; 
when I speak a lie, I speak of my own." 



152 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

" What ! an auctioneer or a lawyer speak the truth ? 
When, where, how ? Truth is not taken into account. 
Lawyers and auctioneers are privileged characters : an 
honest lawyer or auctioneer these times, would starve 
to death ! Who expects truth from us, excepting now 
and then perchance ? And if so be the truth does slip 
out occasionally or unintentionally, who knows it? 
who can tell whether it be the truth or a he ?" 

Privileged, indeed ! when and where has God given 
license to lawyers, auctioneers, merchants, or any man, 
to He, cheat, or steal ? Lying is steahng, and steahng 
is lying. " By swearing, and lying, and killing, and 
stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and 
blood toucheth blood." 

A httle African girl, who lived in the missionary 
house in Africa, was requested by, a woman to steal 
some article, and bring it secretly to her. The child 
replied, " What shall I say when God speaks to me 
about stealing ? and when I burn, what shall I do ?" 

" Theft will not be always hidden. 
Though we fancy none can spy ; 
When we take a thing forbidden, 
God beholds it with his eye." 

The man who uses a short yard-stick, '' false weights 
and measures," is a thief, a violator of the eighth com- 
mandment, and the Lord will not hold him guiltless. 

." Te shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie 
one to another." Lev, xix. 11. 

" And if thou sell aught unto thy neighbor, or buyest 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 153 

auglit of thy neighbor's hand, ye shall not oppress one 
another." " Thou shalt not have in thy bag divers 
weights, a great and a small; but thou shalt have a 
just and perfect weight, and just measure shalt thou 
have." " A false balance is an abomination to the 
Lord ; but a just Aveight is his delight." Prov. xi. 1. 

" Do justice. 'Tis thy God's command, 

The mandate of thy king ; 
Be prompt in rendering dues to all, 
And let no fraud-spot, great or small, 

Unto thy conscience cling." 

A beloved minister, standing at our right hand, in- 
forms us that several coal-dealers, members of ortho- 
dox churches, unitedly combined to give a specified 
number of pounds less in every load of coal than the 
law demands. Let every one of these church-members 
take their pens forthwith, and write opposite each of 
their names, " Thief !" Are they not thieves ? 

Again, is not every man a thief who adulterates any 
article of food, and sells it for genuine? Are there 
not those (not a few) who adulterate milk, sugar, tea, 
coffee, molasses, and other articles of domestic use, 
and sell them for genuine, perfect, unmixed ? "WTiat is 
this but a species of theft, a violation of a positive pre- 
cept ? " Thou shalt not steal." 

Here is a man that sells an article of merchandise as 
sound and in good order, knowing, meanwhile, it is in- 
jured or defaced ! Another influential member in an 
orthodox church, has had goods on his shelves two, 



154 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

tliree, four, or six years, which he sells to his customers 
as fresh goods newly purchased ! Is not this merchant 
a liar, a thief ? 

" The love of money is the root of all evil : w-hich 
while some coveted after, they have erred from the 
faith, and pierced themselves through with many sor- 
rows." 

Again, " They that will be rich fall into emptation 
and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, 
which drown men in destruction and perdition." 

The covetousness of these last days is most marked. 
As a result, n^en are becoming very dishonest, and try- 
ing all possible ways to line their pockets with filthy 
lucre. He who is the most successful in deceiving his 
fellow-beings, is thought to be the smartest man. The 
following illustrates the manner of doing business at 
the present day : 

'' A London professor lectured recently on adultera- 
tions of food. He handed round coffee, which w^as 
pronounced excellent, then told the audience that they 
had been regaled with a mixture of bullock's blood, 
chicoiy, sheep's liver, dried and old coffee grouts. 
He gave them capital porter too, made of spirits of 
wine, gum-arabic, and burnt sugar." 

The ingenuity of the age is taxed to its utmost ca- 
pacity, to invent ways and means to cheat the people 
without being detected till after the purchase of the 
spurious articles. All such should remember that they 
can have no place in the coming kingdom. None but 



THE FIBE THAT BURNS. 155 

honest men can be there. All money obtained by dis- 
honesty will only help sink the receiver into eternal 
perdition. The Scriptures inform ns that no '' covet- 
ous" man " shall inherit the kingdom of God." 

We have become a nation of hars! Most people 
love to read and to hear hes, quite as well as others 
like to write and to utter them. Indeed, the one is a 
pretty fair guage of the other. The market and the 
supply of hes are economically adjusted. 

The pubhc will have lies, and the man who must get 
his bread and butter by writing, must have no scruples 
about lying. One of the most popular vnriters of a 
New York journal, said pathetically : " I detest this 
coloring of the truth, this eternal exaggeration of ly- 
ing ; but the people will have it, and I must furnish it 
or starve." Another popular writer, on recovering 
from a dangerous illness, told his physician that he 
should not be able to pay him, until he had got his 
returns from furnishing the pubhc another of his lucra- 
tive stories. That is, a pack of hes in the form of 
novels, romances, siUy love-tales to curse the rising 
age, pushed into public favor by religious editors, and 
some professed Gospel ministers ! 

These dealers in intellectual poisons, that intoxicate 
the mind, corrupt the heart, pollute the soul, will sink 
lower than the grave ! " He that soweth to the flesh, 
shall of the flesh reap corruption." " They have sown 
the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind." Rosea, 
viii. 7. 



156 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

" Can we peruse a book like this, 

And seek a Father's blessing here ? 
Forsake the path that leads to bliss, 
To shed o'er fiction's page a tear?" 

Such writers, in the pulpit or out of it, are considered 
smart. They wake up our imaginations, rouse our 
sympathies, play charmingly upon our passions, and 
we pay them well for it. 

The public hankering for something extraordinary, 
startling, highly-colored, and exaggerated, has crept 
into our churches, invaded the pews, and to some extent 
given laws to the pulpit. There is now a great demand 
for smart preachers. The question is not whether a 
preacher is pious, prayerful, faithful, sound in faith, 
and a winner of souls — one who rightly divides the 
Word of truth, and gives to every man his portion in 
due season — all this is behind the times, and old fogy. 
Is he smart ? That's the question. Does he stretch 
the india-rubber to its utmost tension, and hammer out 
the precious grain of gold so thin, that it has but one 
side ? Can he do a splendid business on a small cap- 
ital ? Does he sparkle well ? Oh, then, he is an angel 
standing in the sun ! We must have him at any price. 
What's the use of going to the theatre, when we can 
have what we want at church ? But will he also, as 
occasion may require, let off good round whoppers, 
thumping stories, and rouse us all up ? Then he is the 
man for us. He will fill the house, sell the pews, youth- 
fulize the congregation, and make us a good speculation. 



THE FIBE THAT BURNS. 



157 




"THOU SHALT XOT STEAL." (Ex. xx. 15.) 

WHO ARE THIEVES — WHO NOT. 

" The basest and .meanest of all sins is ilieftP 

" God give us men. A time like this demands * 
Men whom the spoils of office cannot buy ; 
Men who possess opinions and a will ; 
Men who have honor — men who will not lie." 

What says our blessed Lord ? " "Woe unto you, 
Scribes, Pharisees, hypocrites, who devour widows' 



158 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

houses, and for a pretence make long prayers : there- 
fore, ye shall receive the greater damnation." 

Look at another case of theft, if possible, still more 
aggravating. An active member in a professedly evan- 
gelical church, borrowed a thousand dollars in gold, a 
widow's dowry, to support her declining years ; and 
not long after this money was secured, the borrower (a 
w^olf in sheep's clothing!) placed the whole of his 
property in a position so as to prevent the poor widow 
from ever being able to collect a farthing of her money. 
Nor is this a solitary instance of barefaced iniquity in 
the same individual, who is hving in a house richly 
furnished ! 

" Let righteous laws, for public good designed, 
Chain up these wolves and tigers of mankind : 
They have themselves no right to such employ, 
To live like vultures — only to destroy," 

Any one jewing another for the sake of obtaining an 
article for less than its real value (when able, at the 
same time, to pay the full price), is a thief. A faithful 
minister of the Gospel, who keeps a boarding-house to 
sustain his family, informed us, a short time since, that 
a church-member, professing great sanctity, had de- 
frauded him out of some hundreds of dollars by jewing 
and screwing him dow^n every year in the price of 
board ! And this same jewer and screwer is in affluent 
circumstances, wealthy — money enough and to spare. 

*' Gold' banished honor from the mind, 
And only left the name behind." 

" O man of God, flee these things." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 159 

Other boarders steal away from this beloved minister, 
and never pay their board-bill at all ! Stop the thief ! 
Stop the thief ! 

" He that is unjust in the least, is unjust also in 
much." 

A person that is dishonest in little things, is he truly 
honest at heart in anything ? A man that will cheat 
you out of a sixpence, will he not as readily cheat you 
out of a dollar, ten dollars, or a hundred, if a suitable 
opportunity offer ? How frequent are post-office frauds ! 
Some seem to suppose there is no harm in cheating 
the Government out of a little postage. Very many in 
office frank letters and other articles, which they have 
no right to do. If our mail-bags had the gift of speech, 
how frequently would they cry out, " Thief ! thief T be- 
ing burdened ! 

Smuggling is another species of theft. How often 
editors and publishers are defrauded out of their hard 
earned labors by seared consciences at a distance, that 
refuse or neglect to pay their subscriptions ! Yery 
many conceal little mistakes in their favor in reckoning 
or making change. If a conductor in the cars, or a 
stage-driver, in collecting the fare due from passengers, 
evidently overlooks one, does the person thus over- 
looked or passed by come forward voluntarily and pay 
the amount due ? If not, he is a thief ! 

Some persons are guilty of retaining lost articles 
without advertising them or giving public notice. Ai'e 
not such persons thieves at heart? How many poor 



160 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

seamstresses and washerwomen are cheated out of 
their hard-earned pittance by landsharks, or screwed 
down in their wages to starvation ! 

Every one employing another in any service in the 
domestic circle, on the farm, in the mechanic-shop, on 
the cotton or sugar plantation, in rice-swamps, without 
punctual and ample remuneration for servipes rendered, 
is a thief, a barefaced thief I 

" "Woe to them , . . that turn aside the needy 
from judgment, to take away the right from the poor 
of my people, that widows may be their prey, and that 
they may rob the fatherless." Isaiah, x. 1, 2. 

" Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your 
miseries that shall come upon you. Your riches are 
corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. Your 
gold and silver is cankered : and the rust of them shall 
be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it 
Avere fire. . . . Behold, the hire of the laborers 
who have reaped down your fields, which is of you 
kept back by fraud, crieth ; and the cries of them who 
have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of 
Sabaoth." James, v. 1-4. 

" Just God ! and these are they 
Who minister at thine altar, God of right ! 
Men who their hands with prayer and blessing lay 
On Israel's Ark of light ! 

" Paid hypocrites, who turn 
Judgment aside, and rob the Holy Book 
Of those high words of truth, which search and bura 
In warning and I'ebuke." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 161 



SINNING BY PROXY; 

OE, 

PARTAKING OF OTHER MEN'S SINS. 

" Neither he partaker of other men^a sins : keep thyself pure,^^ 1 Tim. 
V. 22. 

1. Postmasters, under Government, are partakers of 
other men's sins — sins of the nation, by opening, assort- 
ing, and dehvering the mail on the Lord's day. " Shall 
the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which 
frameth mischief by a law ?" Psalm xciv. 20. '' Verily 
my Sabbaths ye shall keep : for it is a sign between me 
and you throughout your generations; that ye may 
know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you. Ye 
shall keep the Sabbath therefore : for it is holy unto 
you. Every one that defileth it shall surely be put to 
death : for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul 
shall be cut off from among his people." Exod. xxxi. 
13, 14 

The day being changed from the seventh to the first 
does not lessen, in the slightest degree, our obligation 
to keep it holy. 

2. Those who vote for wicked rulers and officers in 
the city. State, or nation, not only become partakers of 
their guilt, but in a sense become responsible for every 
act of these ungodly men whom they have been instru- 
mental in elevating to office ! 



162 THE SWOKD THAT CUTS : 

'' The wicked walk on every side, 
When the vilest men are exalted." 

"When the wicked bear rule the people mourn." 
Prov, xxix. 2. "Thou shalt provide out of all the 
people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating 
coveteousness ; and place such over them to be rulers." 
Deut i. 13. 

3. Sellers of intoxicating drinks, wholesale and re- 
tail, become, in no small degree, partakers of the sin, 
misery, and ruin of the drunkard and his family ! 

Fearful! What a hell that^ where drunkards and 
drunkard makers meet ! Distillers, grog-sellers, saloon 
and hotel keepers, beware ! Mark well the words of 
Christ, " With what measure ye mete, it shall be meas- 
ured to you again." 

Dealers in strong drinks find this passage literally 
true — the curses they impart often return tenfold upon 
their pates, into their own bosoms. Very many chil- 
dren of those who traffic in liquid death and distilled 
damnation become inebriates, bloated sots, and find a 
drunkard's grave ! Fathers, mothers, sons, and daugh- 
ters, all find a common hell of weeping, waihng, and 
gnashing of teeth ! 

4. Those who rent stores, shops, houses, groves, or 
any property, for the sale of spirituous liquors or 
poisonous narcotics, are partakers of the sins of those 
who traffic in these poisons, as they are directly or in- 
directly instrumental in furthering the cause of Satan. 
Eeader, how many church-members, think you, whose 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 163 

hands are thus imbued in the blood of souls ! Open 
your eyes, look around in our cities and villages. 
What ! rent your house, your store, your field, your 
grove, for purposes unhallowed — riot, drunkenness, 
dissipation, or Sabbath desecration ? Dare you do it, 
friend, for silver or gold ? God will frown on this 
iniquity, sure as life, and hold you responsible for all 
the evil resulting therefrom. 

5. Those who rent halls or public buildings for any 
sinful or unhallowed amusements, such as circuses, 
opera singers, theatrical performances, lewd exhibitions, 
naked statuary, balls, dancing-parties, rioting, licen- 
tious dissipation, &c. Not long since we knew quite a 
conspicuous church-member who prepared a hall, ex- 
pressly for renting to frolickers and other panders to 
vice and wickedness ! 

Shameful ! Man, where your piety ? " Know ye not 
that the friendship of the world is enmity with God." 
" Whatsoever is not of faith is sin." 

6. Owners of stocks in Sabbath-breaking companies, 
such as railroad, steamboat, manufacturing companies, 
&c., which companies employ these instruments in vio- 
lating the commands of God, are verily guilty, even 
though they may be sitting demurely in God's sanctu- 
ary at the time of this Sabbath desecration. Stock- 
holders, be sure your sins will find you out, 

" Thus saith the Lord : Take heed to yourself, and 
bear no burden on the Sabbath-day, nor bring it in by 
the gates of Jerusalem. Neither carry forth a burden out 



164 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

of your house on tlie Sabbath-clay, neither do ye any 
work, but hallow ye the Sabbath-day, as I commanded 
your fathers." Jei\ xvii. 21, 22. 

7. Those Avho advertise and puff infidel and Ucentious 
books, mixed publications, novels, romances, the light 
and frothy readings of the day, are instrumental in 
leading thousands into the path to hell, going down to 
the chambers of death, and thus become both instru- 
ments and partakers of these evils. How many, termed 
religious editors, are in this way riisliing the fiery car of 
Satan ! 

Very many of these fashionable periodicals lead 
directly to the vilest and most corrupt and licentious 
reading. "Behold how great a matter a little fire 
kindleth!" 

Satan transforms himself into an angel of light. 

Editors, are you aware of the mischief you are doing in 

giving favorable notice of these popular works of 

fiction ? 

" How shall I speak thee, or thy power address, 
Thou god of our idolatry, the Press ! 
Like Eden's dread probationary tree, 
Knowledge of good and evil is from thee ! 

8. Servants employed in the service of their masters 
and mistresses, partake of the sins of their employers, 
when they do those things on the Sabbath which God 
commands them not to do. During our residence in 
New Orleans w^e were shocked to hear ministers of the 
Gospel, w^hile preaching to the colored people, exhort 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 166 

them to be obedient to their masters, even though they 
required them to labor on God's holy day ! " Cease, 
my son, to hear the instruction that causeth to err from 
the words of knowledge." "Woe unto the foolish 
prophets." " If the blind lead the blind, both will fall 
into the ditch." Matt xy. 4. " He that saveth his life 
shall lose it." " Let God be true, but every man a liar." 
Servants, obey your masters in the Lord, and only in 
the Lord, come Ufe, come death. 

*' Oil that our God would raise up men 
Whose hearts, unmoved hy popular sin, 
Could bear reproach, and grief, and pain, 

In seiving G-od ; 
Not pride nor wealth their heart could sway, 
Not learned nor great should hedge their way, 
They would not fear the face of day, 

But fear their God." 



PROSPEK-? NEYER— 

Sa^^e in business lawful, for purposes benevolent. 
You ought not to prosper in an evil way. It's a mercy 
God does hedge up your path, frown on your labors, as 
he did on that of Balaam. No man ought to prosper in 
the devil's service. Sooner or later all such wiP find 
their ill-gotten gains a moth, eating as doth a canker ! 
Any man that traffics in rum, tobacco, and other things 
that poison the community, destroy health, life, peace, 
reputation, and salvation, will, by-and-by, rest assured, 
reap his reward. 



166 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



REFORMERS REFORMED. 



" Be Christ my pattern and my guide, 
His image may I bear ; 
Oh, may I tread His holy steps, 
His joy and glory share !" 

Are you a minister of Christ ? Not unless you are a 
reformer. Christ was a reformer ; so were Paul, Peter, 
James, and John, the holy prophets, one and aU. The 
special mission of Jesus, the Lamb of God, to this 
world was to reform it — to destroy Satan's kingdom. 
" For this purpose was the Son of God manifested, that 
he might destroy the works of the devil." 1 Jolin^ iii. 8. 
No one is a true Gospel minister except he be a true 
Bible reformer, striving against all sin, crying aloud, 
sparing not. No Church is a true Church of Christ, un- 
less it is Bible reformatory — a reprover of all sin, a 
lighthouse, '•' a city set on a hill," " the salt of the 
earth." 

" Stand firm ! Oh, 'tis a high command, 

From which no Christian man should tm*n — 

If Satan presses hand to hand, 
A holy fire within should burn; 

'Twill shield the champions of the Lord, 

Contending for His purest word." 



" A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in 
pictures of silver." Prov, xxv. 11. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 



167 




^>\'..VvK^.ts^^'«V. 



FORTRESS OF G-WAI.IOR, IN INDIA. 



The fortress of Gwalior, in India, is near the Gan- 
ges. Soutli of this is the pro^dnce of Orissa, in which 
is the temple of Juggernaut. 

The idol is a carved block of wood, with a hideous 
face, painted black, and a distended, blood-red mouth. 
On festival days the idol is placed on a throne, that is 
elevated on a tower sixty feet high, moving on wheels. 
Six long ropes are attached to the tower, by which the 
people draw it along. The walls of the temple and the 
sides of the car are covered with obscene images, in 
large, durable sculj)tures. While the tower moves 
along, numbers of devout worshippers thro^v them- 
selves on the ground to be crushed by the wheels. 



168 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



PROXY SINS; OR, SINNING BY PROXY. 

THE PARTAKER AS BAD AS THE THIEF. 

*' Woe, woe to him on safety bent. 
Who creeps to age from youth ; 
Failing to grasp his hfe's intent, 
Because he fears the truth." 

" Neither be ye partakers of other men's sins." 

1. Those who adyertise or puff intoxicating drinks, 
tobacco, quack medicines, etc., are partakers of other 
men's sins. It will invariably be found true in theol- 
ogy, and in the day of final retribution, that he who is 
an instrument of evil, or permits evil to exist which he 
might prevent, is guilty of the same, and will be held 
responsible for it. 

2. Those who print, or employ their type and press 
for the dissemination of vice and intemperance in any 
way, are partakers of other men's sins, and are verily 
guilty in the sight of God. Printers and publishers, 
do you say, " We must live ? If we do not employ our 
type and press for sons of Belial somebody else will ?" 
Say not the rumsellers the same ? Beware ! 

3. Those who patronize daily, weekly, or monthly 
periodicals of an infidel or licentious character, are 
partakers of the sins of the ^vriters and publishers of 
these same periodicals. 

4. Ministers who write for infidel papers, popular 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 169 

monthlies or weeklies, fashion-plate magazines, or in 
any way lend their influence to extend the circulation 
of these serpents in the grass, these Satans in disguise, 
are partakers of their sins, the guilt, and eventually 
the • curses of these panders to vice and iniquity ! 
TMierefore? Because they might (by taking a bold 
stand for God) have prevented this aval'aiicJie of evil 
that is now cursing the Church and the world ! 

Thousands are induced to patronize works of fiction, 
romance, and infidelity, simply from the fact that the 
name of reverend is attached by way of commendation, 
or to some article of theirs in these popular weeklies 
and monthhes ! Oh, what a fearful, awful, tremendous 
retribution awaits these time-servers, lovers of filthy 
lucre more than lovers of God and the souls of men ! 

5. Ministers, churches, and church-members are aw- 
fully guilty in the sight of God, and are partakers of 
other men's sins, when they receive or retain in fellow- 
ship those who are known to indulge in secret or open 
transgression. How many unworthy members come 
regularly to the communion-table, unrebuked — proud, 
v/orldly-minded, covetous, selfish as Satan can make 
them. Sabbath-breakers, persons grossly intemperate, 
traffickers in liquid death and distilled damnation, nar- 
cotic poisons — tobacco-slaves, gluttons, ^dne-bibbers ! 
Oh, what a fearful, tremendous, mountain weight of 
guilt rests upon that church or ecclesiastical body, 
which winks at sin, harbors in its bosom those who say 
*' Lord, Lord," and yet work iniquity ! who flatter 

8 



170 THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 

themselves they are on the wSj to heaven, but finally 
will be thrust down to hell ! 

""Woe unto you, ye hypocrites, ye blind guides!" 
" If the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the 
ditch." " There is a way that seemeth right unto man, 
but the end thereof are the ways of death." 



HELP SATAN, SHALL WE ? 



We are frequently called upon to assist in ruining 
the morals of the community. Within the last week, 
two new soul-destroying traps have been sent us, with 
a request to aid in their circulation. They were both 
novels of the real profane stamp. This is unblushing 
impudence — to ask men professing to be devoted 
wholly to God, to lend their papers for the purpose 
of aiding the circulation of such corrupting trash. 

Shall we, through editorial courtesy, comply with 
what has become almost a universal custom among 
editors ? Far from it. When w^e lift our pen to widen 
the waves of pollution and moral death, sent over the 
country by these light and- trashy novels, w^e Avill take 
down our significant motto, and throw off with it the 
profession of rehgion. We will not profess devotion to 
'' truth and holiness," and so directly assist the devil 
in his work of destruction. Such courtesy belongs not 
to the school of Christ. 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 171 

PARTAKING OF OTHER MEN'S SINS. 

GOOD RULERS Al^D BAD RULERS. 

Those who vote for wicked rulers are partakers of 
the sins of those same wicked rulers for whom they 
vote, and are held responsible to God for the sins of 
these same rulers. Header, dost thou belieye this ? 

This principle in theology and God's goyernment is 
true as the inspiration of the Bible. " He that is not 
for me, is against me." Do you 'know you are respon- 
sible, fearfully so, for the Yote you cast, whether for 
officers of city. State, or Governor supreme ? You are 
responsible for the man for whom you vote. 

Is he a wicked man, destitute of moral principle, the 
fear of God ? His deeds will be your deeds, his wick- 
edness will be your wickedness, his oppression will be 
your oppression, his Sabbath-breaking, intemperance, 
licentiousness, and his profanity will be yours — placed 
to your account. His hand dipped in blood is your 
hand dipped in blood ! 

Beware, friend, beivare ! Jiotv you cast your vote — and 
for whom. God has given directions, clear as the 
noonday sun. Tou have no right to vote for an infidel, 
a contemner of God's word, a tippler, a Sabbath- 
breaker, or whoremonger.'^ For whom then ? ^' Thou 



* See the vivid delineation of Daniel Webster's character given by 
Mi's. Swisshelm. 



172 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

slialt in any Avise set him over thee, whom the Lord 
thy God shall choose." Well, who is he ? " Thou 
shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as 
fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness ; and place 
such over them to be rulers." Again, " Te shall not 
respect persons in judgment, but ye shall hear the 
small as well as the great : ye shall not be afraid of 
the face of man, for the judgment is God's." Need we 
quote further ? 

" Be not partaker of other men's sins : keep thyself 
pure." 

WICKED EULERS. 

'' When the wicked hearetli rule the people mourns 

How^ many thousands are mourning at the present 
time in this land, in consequence of the sins of the 
people in electing wicked men as rulers. Think of the 
number of heart-broken wives and mothers, of deso- 
late homes and starving children, made so by the ac- 
cursed liquor-traffic, which is either licensed, or tol- 
erated by law. Think, too, that this devihsh work is 
done by those whom the people have elected as their 
rulers, and who thus consent to these things. But 
worse than all, think that nine-tenths of the professed 
Christians of this land will vote for men who are not 
only wicked themselves, but are pledged to do wick- 
edly — even pledged to trample under foot the law of 
God, which requires us to feed the hungry and shelter 
the outcast. Shame on such professors of Christianity ! 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 



173 







gipsies' EJsCAMPMEXT. 

The Gipsies are a wild and numerous race. Tliey 
are a curse to the countries in wliicli tbey live, and a 
terror to the farmers through whose lands they stroll. 
They seem utterly destitute of conscience, and boast of 
dishonesty as if it were a heavenly virtue. The men 
are horse-jockeys and tinkers, and also cheat and steal, 
as branches of business. The women tell fortunes, 
and in this way get access to houses through ignorant 
and superstitious domestics. They are so expert at 
thieving, that they will hide valuable articles about 
their persons while interesting theu^ dupes about golden 
promises for the future. If, in their wanderings, they 
are denied a spot on which to pitch their tents, woe to 
the offending farmer. 



17-i 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



immn^ 




THE MAN OF BLOOD— THE FIEES OF HELL. 



PAETAKLNTG OF OTHER MEN'S SINiS. 



" Woe to Mm that 'buildetli a town icith hlood,^^ 

Manufacturers of and traffickers in intoxicating 
drinks are partakers of the sins of the wretched inebri- 
ates, made so by their instrumentahty. 

Man, are you a distiller, a retail or wholesale dealer 
of this devil's broth, that stupifies, brntifies, makes men 
devils incarnate, that beggars families and communities, 
that multiplies widows, orphans, and paupers, that fills 
jails, penitentiaries, and mad-houses? that makes the 
world a charnel-house, destroys souls and bodies in 
hell forever ! Are you the man, the guilty one, the 
robber, the murderer, the bloodthirsty one ? 



THE FIRE THAT BUENS. 175 

Do you know God holds you responsible for the ef- 
fects of every drop of this liquid — distilled damnation — 
for all the woe, the misery, the wretchedness, the want, 
and the crime ? Distiller, dramseller, hotel-keeper, be- 
lievest thou this ? and does not thy conscience rebuke 
thee while dealing out the poison by the gill, quart, 
gallon, barrel, or hogshead ? 

Dost thou not know that on tliy devoted head will 
rest fearful anathemas, the hot thunderbolts of Sinai, 
the fiery indigTiation and wrath of the Almighty One? 
Wherefore ? You are the instrument, the aider, the 
tempter, the abettor. Tou make it, sell it, deal it, place 
it to the lips. " "Woe unto him that givetli his neighbor 
drink." You are the chief mischief-maker and ruiner 
in this hellish traffic. Friend, are you aware that the 
drunkard's oaths and blasphemies are your oaths and 
blasphemies — that his cruelties, debaucheries are your 
cruelties and debaucheries? that his thefts, robberies 
and murders are your thefts, robberies, and murders ? 
that his hell will be your hell, heated seven times hotter 
than is wont ? Do you know this ? Do you believe it ? 
Certain it is, as God is a God of justice, judgment, and 
mercy. Wherefore ? You might, so far as your instru- 
mentality is concerned, have prevented this fearful 
catalogue of crime, misery, and death — those oaths, 
blasphemies, thefts, murders ; those widows' and or- 
phans' groans — those tears and blood. Oh, ye prison- 
makers and hell-fillers ; ye murderers of fathers and 
murderers of mothers ; je manslayers ; ye bloodthirsty 



176 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

ivretches ; on you rests this crushing mountain weight 
of guilt. 

God holds you responsible ; you sin by proxy. You 
do and will partake largely of the sin, guilt, condemna- 
tion and damnation of all those miserable, besotted; 
bloated, degraded, beastly wretches, whom you^ by your 
accursed traffic, have been instrumental in consigning 
to a premature drunkard's grave and a drunkard's hell! 

"Go ... . weep and howl for the miseries that shall 
come upon you. Your riches are corrupted, your gar- 
ments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver are can- 
kered, and the rust of them shall be a witness against 
you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire !" 

The fate of Ahab, a Jezebel, a Belshazzar, a cruel, 
murderous Herod, a bloodthirsty Nero, will be a 
heaven, compared to the hell of hells which is now 
opening to receive you. Oh, ye distillers, di-amsellers, 
grogsellers, hotel-keepers that deal out the poison, ye 
body and soul destroyers, oh, turn, turn, for why will 
you die ? ''Be not partakers of other mens sins.'' 



Cabefully compiled statistics show that sixty thou- 
sand lives are annually destroyed by intemperance in 
the United States. 

One hundred thousand men and women are yearly 
sent to prison in consequence of strong drink. 

Twenty thousand children are yearly sent to the 
poorhouse for the same reason. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 177 



[FLATTERING LIPS— THE DEVIL'S BAITS. 

*' No more the sovereign eye of God 
O'erlooks the crimes of men ; 
His heralds now are sent abroad 
To warn the world of sin." 

Flatter him? Flatter no one. ''The flatterer's art 
betrays the heart." Flatter a man ! Praise him to his 
face ! Speak of his good deeds in his presence ! Is 
this safe, wise, prudent, becoming ? A Vvdse, sensible, 
God-fearing man abhors it, and is ready to say to the 
flatterer, " Get thee behind me, Satan, thou art an 
offence unto me ; for thou savorest not the things that 
be of God, but those that be of men." Few things are 
more displeasing to a good man than self-adulation. 
" He that speaketh flattery to his friend, even the eyes 
of his children shall fail." 

We have nothing we can call our own. " Every good 
gift and every perfect gift is from above." '' Even the 
preparation of the heart and the answer of the tongue 
are from the Lord." The greatest, the best, the most 
holy, the most useful men have nothing to boast of ; 
when they have done all they can, they are still entirely 
dependent on God for every good thought, word, and 
deel. 

If we have anything good or praiseworthy to say of 
a poor, sinful worm of the .dust, say it in his absence, 
and not in his presence ; and be sure to give God the 

8^ 



178 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

glory; for God will not give his glory to another, 
neither his praise to graven images. ^*He that rebuk- 
eth a man, afterward shall find more favor than he 
that flattereth with the tongue." Prov, xxviii. 23. 

A word of encouragement, now and then, may be 
safely dropped in the ear of the timid, the truly 
modest, humble follower of Jesus, but never use the 
tongue of the flatterer. It's poison to the soul — a subtle 
enemy. Many a man has lost his balance by being 
eulogized to his face. " Let every man prove his otvti 
work, then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and 
not in another." 

" A man that flattereth his neighbor, spreadeth a net 
for his feet." 

" Meddle not with him that flattereth with his lips." 

Ministers of the Gospel, especially novices in the 
Christian faith and in holiness to the Lord, are almost 
Bure to fall into this trap of Satan — ^be lifted up with 
pride and self-conceit, when flattered. 

Keader, are you dead, indeed, to sin? dead and 
buried to the love of applause ? Or are you tempted 
to receive honor of jowc fellows-beings, instead of seek- 
ing the honor which cometh from God only ? Beware ! 
Do everything to please God, Keep self out of sight, 
in prayer, preaching, praise, and testimony, in every 
deed of mercy and benevolence. Do all you do — in 
thought, word, or deed — for God ; with special reference 
to the glory of Him who bought you with a price, who 
is worthy to receive honor and glory everlasting. In 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 179 

bestowing alms, deeds of charity and mercy, in contrib- 
uting to the sustainment of benevolent societies, the 
cause of Bibles, tracts, missions, the relief of the poor 
and oppressed — "let not your left hand know what 
your right hand doeth." Be dead and buried to 
praise, to flatteries, to applauses, to commendations, 
or disapprobations in the path of duty. " Confer not 
with flesh and blood." Do everything to exalt the 
name of Jesus. Let the spring of every motive be 
pure. Christ says : " Take heed that you do not your 
alms before men, to be seen of them ; otherwise ye 
have no reward of your Father who is in heaven." 

The most fearful judgments have come upon those 
who attempt to rob God of His glory. "Is not this 
great Babylon, that I have built?" said Nebuchadnez- 
zar, in a spirit of self-exaltation. "What now ? He Avas 
driven from men to dwell among the beasts of the field, 
and made to eat grass as oxen. Dan, iv. 30, 31. Mark 
that wicked Herod also, who took glory to himself, and 
immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because 
he gave not God the glory, and he was eaten of worms, 
and gave up the ghost. Acts, xii. 21, 22. 

" I am the Lord ; that is my name ; and my glory 
will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven 
images." Isa, xlii. 8. " Whosoever shall exalt himself 
shall be abased ; and he that shall humble himself shall 
be exalted." "Mind not high things, but condescend 
to men of low estate. Be not T\dse in your own con- 
ceit," &c. And, again, Phil. ii. 2, 3: "Fulfil ye my 



180 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

joy, that ye may be like minded, haying the same love 
being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done 
through strife or vain-glory ; but in lowliness of mind, 
let each esteem others better than themselves." 

" When Mary cliose the better part, 

She meekly sat at Jesus' feet ; 

And Lydia's gently-opened heart 

"Was made for God's own temple meet. 
Fan*est and best adorned is she, 
Whose clothing is hmniiity." 



REPROOFS NEGLECTED. 

Few duties of the Christian professi n are so gener- 
ally neglected, even by sincere and earnest men, as 
that of reproof. Private expostulation with a wrong- 
doer is unfrequent, while public rebul^e of public sins is 
still more rare. And yet it is in reality not difficult to 
perform. The reprover has the conscience of the of- 
fender on his side ; he has the general sense of the 
community, the claims of propriety, and the demands 
of duty all with him. What he needs is " meekness of 
wisdom," a mild but firm representation of the wrong 
done, and a sense of dependence on God for strength 
to perform the duty, and grace to make it effectual* 
^^ Thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbor, and not 
suffer sin upon him." " He that rebuketh a man, after- 
v/ard shall find more favor than he that flattereth with 
his tongue." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 



18X 










ARAB3 CAMPING OUT. 



The Arabs, since the days of tlie Patriarchs, have 
ever led the life of wandering shepherds. They live in 
movable tents, made of goat's and camel's hair. The 
care of sheep and cattle is left mostly to the women. 
They not unfrequently plunder without mercy all who 
are unable to resist them. Paul first preached the 
Gospel in Arabia. Gal, i. 17. Christian churches were 
subsequently founded, and many of their tribes em- 
braced Christianity prior to the fifth century ; most of 
which appears to have been tinctured v/ith the Nesto- 
rian heresy. 



182 THE SWORD THAT CUTS' 



PROXY SINS ; OR, SINNING BY PROXY. 

THE children's SINS THE PARENT'S, AND THE PARENT'S SINS THE 
children's. — THE PARENT'S LIFE THE CHILD'S J[.IFE. 

" Be not partaker of otlier inen^s sins : keep tliyself purer 

Parent, are you aware of it ? Do you believe that 
you are responsible for the conduct of your children, 
their words, their deeds, the influence they exert for 
weal or for woe ? That your life is their life, and their 
life is your life ? That when they swear, you swear ? 
When they tell a lie, you tell a lie — when they steal, 
you steal — when they break the Sabbath, you break 
the Sabbath — when they read novels, you read novels ? 
When they follow the fashion, attend scenes of mirth, 
gayety, and folly, the dance, the ball-room, and the 
theatre, that you, in a certain sense, do the same 
things ? 

Parent, do you believe that when your children dis- 
obey God, you disobey God ? When they attend the 
street-school, you attend the street-school — when they 
follow a multitude to do evil, you follow a multitude to 
do e^dl— w^hen they speak idly, proudly, impudently, 
and foolishly, you speak idly, proudly, impudently, 
foolishly? When they set up their Ebenezer, cry, 
pout, and kick, saying, " I will and I won't : give me 
this, give me that," that you, in amount, do the same 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 183 

things ? At least, are you not morally responsible for 
every wilful cleA'iation from rectitude ? Beloved, is 
not this soimd theology? Thinkest thou this a hard 
saying — who can bear it ? Try it by the touchstone of 
Omnipotence. " To the word and the testimony ; if 
we speak not according to this, it is because there is 
no truth in us." God be our witness, " Children ought 
not to lay up for their parents, but the parents for the 
children." " If any provide not for his own, and es- 
pecially for those of his own house, he hath denied the 
faith, and is worse than an infidel." " Train up a child 
in the way he should go, and when he is old he "^^dll 
not depart from it." '' To him that knoweth to do 
good and doeth it not, to him it is sin." 

The responsibility of well-doing or evil-doing is on 
your shoulders in household duty. What your " little 
ones" do, you do, whether it be good or whether it be 
evil. When your sons and your daughters do wicked, 
selfisli things, tell lies, swear, steal, play truant, asso- 
ciate with the wicked, sin as with a cart-rope, drink in 
iniquity as the ox drinketh water — are not these very 
sins, dark as they are, yours, from first to last ? 

We say it ? Yes. Wherefore ? God says it, speaks 
it, once, twice, three times — thunders it ! David found 
it so ; Eli found it so ; parents, in every instance, who 
disobey God in family training, find it so, every day, 
every hour. 

You sin by proxy when those under your special 
jurisdiction " go astray, speaking lies as soon as bom," 



184 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

kill time, say foolish things, do foolish things. Parent, 
every child of yours, through your faithful, godly in- 
struction and holy example, is bound solemnly to be 
Jesus Christ's, unreservedly — spirit, soul, and body. 
Believest thou this ? The work is yours. If it is out 
of place, God-defying, for you to be proud, covetous, 
earthly, sensual, attend places of sinful amusements, 
the theatre, the opera-house, the ba.ll-room, the fash- 
ionable party or concert ; squander precious golden 
moments at the card-table or checker-board, read non- 
sense, talk nonsense, and laugh at nonsense — is it not 
equally wrong and soul-destroying for your children to 
do these wicked things ? And where rests chiefly the 
guilt and condemnation, if hot on you? What saith 
the Lord, the King eternal, immortal, mvisible, the only 
wise God? 

Is it not equally lawful for you to serve Satan, the 
old serpent, the devil, as it is for your sons and your 
daughters to serve him, with arm outstretched f Is it 
wrong for you to violate the fourth commandment, 
think your own thoughts, speak your own words, do 
your own pleasure — write business letters, visit the 
post-office, the barber-shop, read the secular news, en 
gage- in worldly conversation, idle, frothy chit-chat — 
patronize steamboats and rail-cars, meat and milk 
carriers — on that day which God says " Thou shalt 
KEEP HOLY?" Is it not equally iniquitous in the sight 
of Heaven for those under your paternal care to do the 
same — serve Satan with hands uplifted, God-defying? 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 185 

As the parent, so the child ; as the child, so the parent 
— like parents, like children. 

Again, look at another high-handed, outstretched 
arm of rebellion — the fashionable foUies of the day, 
the gay and costly adornments, worldly conformity in 
dress and equipage. You, parents, may not plume 
yourselves hke the butterfly or peacock, " tipt-off " in 
gewgaws, artificials, golden trinkets, ear-jewels, and 
breastpins ; spend hours at the toilet in gTatifying a 
spirit of pride and vanity, tempt Satan to tempt you — 
but if you permit your children to adorn themselves 
with braided hair, gold, pearls, and costly array, is not 
the sin yours, and will not God hold you responsible 
for the evil consequences thereof ? Tctke care ! 

We might enumerate family sins, the sins of your 
children, sin after sin — the suis of the flesh and spirit, 
of omission and commission, of thought, word, and 
deed — no matter what the sinful indulgence or fleshly 
gratification may be, we lay them at your door, parent, 
place them to your account. There is but one law for 
parents and for childi^en, for old and young. " The 
soul that sinneth,it shall die." 

As it v/as with the neglect of Eli and David in house- 
hold duty, so it is now, with increased aggravation of 
guilt and condemnation, as light dawns resplendently. 
God laid upon EK the iniquity of his sons. Yyliere- 
fore ? He did not repress their wickedness without 
partiality, and maintain the v/orship of God in purity 
in his own house and in the Temple. He was deemed 



186 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

an accomplice in the crimes of his sons, because he 
connived at them. He knew his duty, and did it not. 
" For I have told him that I will judge his house for- 
ever, for the iniquity which he knoweth : because his 
sons were vile, and he restrained them not." 1 Sam, 
iii. 13. (See, also, 1 Sam, ii. 29-36.) Responsible for 
the sins of your children, as truly and certainly as God 
rules and reigns.^' 

'' Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before 
the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. 
And he shall turn the heart of the children to their 
fathers, lest I come and^mite the earth with a curse." 
Mai, iv. 5, 6. " For I the Lord am a jealous God, visit- 
ing the iniquities of the fathers upon the children unto 
the third and fourth generation of them that hate me ; 
and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love 
me and keep my commandments." Ex, xx. 5, 6. 

*' Make your home beautiful ; sure, 'tis a duty : 

Call up your little ones — teach them to walk 
Hand in hand with the wandering angel of beauty ; 

Encourage their spirits with nature to talk. 
Gather them round you, and let them be learning 

Lessons that drop from the delicate wrings 
Of the bird and the butterfly — ever returning 

To Ilim who has made all these beautiful things." 

* Exonerate the children ? Not in the least. Eli's wicked sons 
were guilt}^, outrageously. David's also ; and they suffered the just 
demerits of their deeds : and so will all disobedient sons and daugh- 
ters, who know their duty and do»it not. 

*' Even a child is known by his doings, whether his work be pure, 
and whether it be right." 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 



187 




JEWELS OF GOLD, JEWELS OF SILVER 

1. Jewel signifies a precious and costly ornament. 
Gen, xxiv. 53. 

2. God's children are compared to jewels. " And 
they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day 
when I make up my jewels." Hal. ii. 17. 

3. "Wisdom or knowledge is compared to a jewel. 
" The lips of knowledge are a precious jewel." " If thou 
seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid 
treasures, then shalt thou understand the fear of the 
Lord, and find the knowledge of God." Prov, ii. 5. 
" She is more precious than rubies : and all the things 
thou canst desKe are not to be compared unto her." 
Ptov, iii. 15. 

Finally, the soul is a jewel of infinite value. Sinner, 
is this jewel of thine safe ? There are robbers that lie 
in wait for thy soul constantly, and if their utmost 
spite can keep thee out of heaven, thou shalt never 
come there. 



188 THE SWOKD THAT CUTS : 

*' WHERE NO WOOD IS, THE FIRE GOETH OUT." 

REVIVALS HINDERED — THE WORK OF GRACE. 

" Turn you at my reproof r — Frov. i. 23. 

Kevivals hindered. When ? how ? 

1. Neglecting to enforce proper discipline. Achana 
are in the camp ; Israel cannot move a step. " A little 
leaven leaveneth the whole lump." 

2. Variances in the Church unreconciled. "If ye 
bite and devour one another, take heed ye be not con- 
sumed one of another." 

3. Neglect of suitable confession or restitution. 

4. Neglect of fasting and humiliation. 

5. Long prayers and exhortations, without any point, 
pith, soiil^ or special aim. 

6. A few principal members occupying most of the 
time in prayer and conference meetings, while others are 
silent, or not called upon. Ruinous ! 

7. For some brother to rise in the meeting and say, 
" There is a lion in the way, a lion !" Awful ! 

8. Not praying to the point, fervently, in faith, in 
the Holy Spirit, perseveringly, Jacob-like, saying, '' 1 
ivill not let thee go^ 

9. Neglecting to bring oR the tithes into the store- 
house. 

10. Preaching without the Holy Spirit, point, pith, 
condensation, practical application, and not making 
every one feel, '' Thou art the man." 



THE FIBE THAT BURNS. 189 

11. Preaching three long sermons on the Sabbath to 
one congregation. 

12. Beading sermons instead of preaching them. 

13. Preaching on popular subjects, merely to excite 
public attention, without special aim at hohness of 
heart and hfe, or the conviction or conversion of sin- 
ners. Quite common. 

14. The life, out of the pulpit, not corresponding with 
the life in the pulpit. Alas, how frequent ! 

15. Preaching to signers over the heads of lukewarm, 
w^orldly-minded, covetous church-members ! Horrible ! 

16. Neglecting to break up the fallow ground 
thoroughly, remove every stumbling-block, and elevate 
the Church to a holy standard. 

17. Not making every church-member feel that lie 
has something t6 do. 

18. Not removing every drone fi^om the hive. 

19. Neglect of faithful and continued pastoral and 
church visitations. 

20. Preachers carrying on gthe^^ kinds of business, 
and not giving their whole time, talents, and soul to 
the work. 

21. Want of union — united and hearty co-operation 
betw^een the Church and the minister. 

22. Narcotic poisons — tobacco, opium^ etc. — Though 
their power to excitathe baser passions may not equal 
that of alcohol, yet their sedative effects, in destroying 
the sensibilities, as effectually incapacitates its victim 
for spiritual exercises. Though those under the in- 



190 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

fluence of narcotics, or of alcohol, may appear to 
themselves and others quite devotional ; may write, 
preach, pray, and exhort ; it is all spurious — the offer- 
ing of strange fii'e. God abhors it ! 

23. Another stumbhng-block or hindrance to revivals 
and an onward movement of salvation is light, popular 
reading — works of fiction, novels, romances, fashion- 
plate magazines, and comicals. These are the most 
potent engines the devil ever 'planted upon the earth, to 
undermine the principles of virtue and subvert the 
morahty of the Bible. They drive individuals from 
the sanctuary, close the Bible, alienate the heart from 
God, and plunge the soul into temporal ruin and eter- 
nal death ! 

24. Again : one great and special hindrance to revi- 
vals in our cities, is worldly and carnal excitements, 
" picnic religion," sitting down to eat and drink, and 
"rising up to play." 

Is money to be raised for church debts, church build- 
ing or repairing ? for ^ Sabbath-school or a mission- 
ary enterprise? for the increase of the minister's 
salary? is money wanted to relieve the poor or for 
any benevolent operation ? What now ? How is this 
money to be forthcoming ? In a sober, rational, Gospel 
way ? Nay, a feast is prepared ; a soiree introduced, a 
fancy fair, a picnic, a concert or exhibition of some 
kind, a donation, tea, or strawberry party, a sleigh-ride, 
oyster-supper, a tin or gold wedding, something to in- 
flame the passions, excite and enlarge the appetite, 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 191 

produce a little fim or Tulgar merriment. These are 
stratagems of Satan, death, double death, to serious 
thought and reflection ! Oh, what a curse, what a curse ! 
" Awake ! aioake ! arise ; put on strength, O Zion." 

" How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard ? when wilt 
thou arise out of sleep ?" 

" Ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence, 
and giye Him no rest, till He establish, and till He make 
Jerusalem a praise in all the earth." 

'' Awake, thou that sleepest ; arise from the dead, and 
Christ shall give thee light." " Cast ye up, cast ye up, 
prepare the way, take up the stumbling-block out of the 
way." 

" Wake, thou that sleepest : Tune's great clock is tolluag 
The fated hour that ends the passing year ; 
Life's restless waves with fearful might are rolling, 
And strewing priceless wrecks of all that's dear." 

" Break up your fallow-ground, and sow not among 
thorns." " Set up the standard toward Zion." 

" Whatever is done by a church, or by a portion of the 
members for it, should be so done as neither to sacri- 
fice nor to obscure that which distinguishes the Church 
from the world. How totally fairs or tea-parties fail to 
meet this requu-ement, we need not tarry to depict. 
They are scenes of mirthfulness and levity, in which 
men can trace nothing that distinguishes the Church 
from the world." 

" Be not conformed to this world, but be ye trans- 
formed." 



192 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 




BUTTERFLY AND PEACOCK FOLKS. 

A BUTTEEFLY ! Tes, jou are, friend, a 'butterfly or a 
peacock, and not a whit better for doing good, if so be 
you follow^ tlie fashions, dress gayly and costly, tip ofl* 
in fine things ; think more of a pretty face, a new dress, 
bonnet, or shawl, than you do of the Bible, the Lord 
Jesus, the salvation of your soul, and the souls of those 
around you. 

You go to the communion-table, gew-gawed, jewelled, 
artificialled, with broidered hair, gold, pearls, and costly 
array, in the tip-top fashion of worldliness. Friend, is 
this the creed, the discipline, the articles of faith ? Is 
it Bible — " the hidden man of the heart, in that which 
is corruptible ; even the ornament of a meek and quiet 
spirit, w^hich is in the sight of God of great price?" 
What the use of church rules, except we abide by them 
— carry them out practically ? Without their observ- 
ance they are a dead-letter ; worse, they become a trap, 
a snare, perjury ! What ! vow to God, and pay not ? 
It's blasphemy ! Bead Isa. iii. 16-19. Also Bom. xii. 
2 ; 1 Tim. ii. 9 ; 1 Pet. iii. 3. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 193 



HINDRANCES TO REYIYALS.— Contintjed. 

" Why stand ye here all the day idle F" 

" The fields were all white with the haiTest, 
But the reapers were few." 

25. Preaching ivitlwut meaning somebody — away off^ to 
the inliabitaiits of the moon, or some distant planet, 
without special aim, object, or practical appHcation ; 
without bringing the truth of the Gospel liome to every 
heart, every conscience. Alas ! how many sermons are 
lost, loorse than lost, by this milk and water, " linsey- 
woolsey" system, this half-hearted indefiniteness ! 

Did John the Baptist preach thus ? When the Phar- 
isees and Sadducees came to his baptism, what did he 
say ? " Peace, peace," w^hen there was no peace ? Hark ! 
" O generation of vipers, who hath w^amed you to flee 
from the wTath to come?" Matt, iii. 7-10. 

T\Tien some were present that told Jesus of the Gal- 
ileans, w^hose blood Pilate mingled with their sacrifices, 
Jesus answering said unto them, "Suppose ye that 
those Galileans were sinners above all Galileans, be- 
cause they suffered such things ? I tell you nay ; but 
except ye repent ye shall all Hkewise perish." Every 
heart must be probed to the bottom, every Achan 
searched, every Agag and false hope slain. Awake, 
awake! 

26. Not keeping the track — following up sermon after 

9 



194 THE S^TORD THAT CUTS: 

sermon, conviction after conviction, till the fallow 
ground is mellowed, tliorouglily broken up — till the 
Syrians in Aphek are consumed. Elisha said to the 
king of Israel : *' Smite on the ground. And he smote 
thrice and ceased. And the man of God was wroth 
with him, and said, Thou shouldest have smitten five 
or six times, then hadst thou smitten Sja'ia till thou 
hadst consumed it ; w^hereas now thou shalt smite Syria 
but thrice." 2 Kings, xiii. 18, 19. 

27. The ungodly, disobedient, conscience-seared children 
of Christian professors, is another special hindrance to 
revivals or the conversion of sinners ! 

What stumbling-block can be greater than the awful, 
horrible, heaven-daring inconsistency of parental train- 
ing! Parents pledge themselves, enter into solemn 
covenant, ratify the same in the presence of God, angels, 
and men — vow, most positively, to train their children 
for God, loholly for God, and then trample this vow 
under foot, stamp it down! suffer their httle ones to 
grow up in the service of Satan, play truant, drink the 
cup of pollution to its very dregs !^ Look at that 
Christian mother, decking her daughter in robes of 
gayety, fashion, and folly — for w^hat? Moloch? for 
hell ? or for heaven ? For the inquiry-meeting, or for 
some sinful amusement, some, pleasure-party — the 
dance, the ball-room, the foolish and fashionable con- 
cert? 

Is not the course of some parents sufficient to Mil a 
revival — extinguish the last spark of holy kindling? 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 195 

drive away every serious and solemn thought of re- 
pentance, of death, judgment, and eternity ? 

Oh, woman, where is thy faith ? Wilt thou murder 
the soul? 

28. The ungodly, recMess, conscience-seared, case-hard- 
ened children of ministers. Oh, what tears of Uood are 
called for ! "What killed the influence of Eli, the priest 
of God ? "What poured out the vials of God Almighty's 
wrath on his devoted head ? His sons were vile, and 
he restrained them not. A minister may speak with 
the tongues of men and of angels, and what avail, so 
long as he violates, openly and continually, a prom- 
inent, a special requisition of ministerial qualification ? 
His words fall comparatively powerless. The cry, 
" Physician, heal thyself," rings ! 

29. Sectarianism — the many-headed monster ! 

Perhaps there is no greater hindrance to the conver- 
sion of sinners, the final triumph of the gospel, than 
party spirit, a spirit of rivalship — " I am of Paul, I am 
of ApoUos, I am of Cephas." What is this but selfish- 
ness, hateful and abominable in the sight of God and 
man, a stumbling-block over which thousands and mil- 
lions have stumbled into the bottomless pit ! When- 
ever and wherever God's people have laid aside their 
" Shibboleths," their selfishness, childishness, narfow- 
mindedness, and bigotry, united honestly and heartily 
in demolishing Satan's kingdom, has not God invaria- 
bly poured out a blessing uncontainable ? 



196 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS 




THE VALLEY OP JORDAN. 



Through this valley flows the river Jordan, which 
overflows its banks in the spring. It was during the 
annual swelling of Jordan that Joshua and the Israel- 
ites crossed it. Josh. iii. 15. Yet the swift and swol- 
len current was arrested in its course opposite to 
Jericho ; and while the waters below the city rolled on 
to the sea, those above it were miraculously stayed, 
and left in the river-bed a wide passage for the host 
of Israel. Twice afterward the Jordan was miracu- 
lously crossed by Elijah and Elisha. 2 Kings, ii. 8-14. 
In its waters the leprosy of Naaman was healed, and 
the lost axe-head floated at the word of EKsha. 2 
Kings, v. 15-66. Here, too, our Saviour was baptized. 
Matt iii. 18. 



THE FIBE THAT BURNS. 197 



THAT SHRILL WHISTLE. 

Steam-whistle, wicked, Sabbatli-breaking whistle, 
that we hear every Lord's-day morning, on the . . 
. Hne, ringing in our ears, piercing like a 
dagger to the soul ! What its purport ? " No God, 
no God /" openly, boldly, blasphemously defiant of the 
great I Am ! 

Notwithstanding the many warnings, the fearful, aw- 
ful judgments God has sent to awaken this and the 
other lines, these companies still persist in fighting 
against God, defying Omnipotence to arms ! Eriends, 
are you stronger, wiser, and mightier than God Al- 
mighty? Have you an arm to cope with His? We 
tell you, nay. God has spoken .to you once, twice, 
three times — gently, mildly, persuasively, in a still, 
small voice — next, he speaks thunderingly, fiasliingly , 
causing every ear to tingle ! These judgments hith- 
erto, though terribly fearful, heartrending, are but a 
mere inJding of what he will do, except ye repent. 
Gain anything, think you, by trampling in the dust 
God's positive precepts, his high and holy mandates ? 
You lose tenfold, even pecuniarily, and with all, a pure 
conscience and life eternal ! 

Your everlasting weKare is at stake, your hope be- 
yond the gTave. God sends fire now, to burn up the 
wicked works of wdcked men, and he will send fire that 
is never quenched, to bum up all who persistently 



198 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

trample on tlie blood of the new and everlasting cov- 
enant. " The pile thereof is fire and much wood, the 
breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, doth 
kindle it." Isaiah, xxx. 33. (See, also, Ps, i., xxix., xxx., 
xxxi. ; Mark, ix. 43, 44 ; Luhe, xii. 3, 5. " The wicked 
shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget 
God." *' Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire, 
and brimstone, and an horrible tempest." Ps, xi. 6. 
(See 3Iatt xiii. 10 ; Luke, xvi. 22 ; John, v. 28. The 
Bible is clear on this point as the noonday. Life 
eternal and death eternal, heaven and hell, are placed 
side by side. " Then shall he say to them on his left 
hand, Depart, ye accursed, into everlasting fire pre- 
pared for the devil and his angels. . . . These shall 
go away into everlasting punishment ; but the right- 
eous into life eternal." 

" The soul that scorned the mandate dies, 
And meets a fiery day." 

Tour losses abeady by blow-ups, smash-downs, 
overturnings, burnings, and rebellions in your ranks, 
have more than quadrupled all your ill-gotten gains on 
holy time, to say nothing of broken bones, shivered 
limbs, marred visages, and scores hurried into eternity 
as in a moment ; and still you close your eyes, your 
ears — rush on like madmen, as you are ! 

Friends, we beg of you, stop, stop ! this wild career. 
Stojo! lay down your bloody arms of rebellion, and 
keep holy time quietly, peacefully, God-fearingly. Be- 
sides the impending guilt, danger, and damnation rest- 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 199 

ing on you for this outrageousness of yours in this land 
of Bibles, jomx example is like a hurricane, a rushing, 
mighty tornado for evil, in our cities and through the 
whole line of this trespassing. By this general, open, 
Heaven-daring violation of God's high mandate, you 
scatter, widely, " firebrands, arrows, and death !" Sab- 
bath desecration leads to every other sin. It's the 
letting out of waters — setting the world on fire. Look, 
moreover, at our horse-cars on the Sabbath. What 
are they doing ? What a curse, oh, ivliat a curse ! 
What a terrible smash-down business of all that is 
pure, lovely, and of good report ! 

And still you see ministers, editors, deacons, class- 
leaders, church-members of every name, riding on 
these firebrands of the pit on the Lord's day, helping 
to push Satan's car ! 

SABBATH TRAINS WON't PAY, WON't JUSTIEY."^ 
" Six days slialt thou labor and do all thy work.'^ 

1. There is no necessity whatever for running cars 
on the Lord's day. The travelling public do not re- 
quire it. Such is the rapidity of the cars, any point of 
destination may be reached in six days. Consequently, 
any pretext for breaking God's law is removed. 

^ The stables on Fourteenth-sti-eet, belonging to the Fulton Feny 
and Bleecker-street Railroad, were consumed by fire February 5, 
1866, and seventy horses burned to death. Loss, $40,000. Was 
not this a voice from the Eternal, " My Sabbaths shall ye keep." 



200 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

2. God's displeasure is strikingly manifested against 
those who openly desecrate holy time. "When do the 
most fearful and frightful accidents happen on railroad 
cars and steamboats? Mark well, God has spoken, 
once, twice, three times — yes, many times, in thunder 

tones, " KEEP MY SABBATHS." 

3. Sabbath trains will not pay, because this tramp- 
ling God's law in the dust outrages common sense, 
good feeling, every just and holy principle. Every 
man, woman, or child, possessing the least spark of 
justice and conscientious rectitude, cries out from the 
bottom of the soul, " Stop this desecration, this open 
daring, God-dishonoring violation — stop it r 

4. Men employed on railroads need rest, at least one 
whole day out of seven. No class of laborers need it 
more. It is foolish, wicked, suicidal, downright mad- 
ness to overwork railroad men! The loss of rest, 
sleep, and the overtaxing of the body, tend to the most 
fearful results — the loss of property by millions ! yes, 
the precious lives of thousands ! 

It is right, the interest, the duty of all railroad com- 
panies to have nothing to do v/ith running trains on 
the Sabbath. 



" The righteous man wisely considereth the house of 
the mcked ; but God overthroweth the wicked for 
their wickedness." Prov, xxi. 12. 



THE FIRE. THAT BURNS. 201 

LOTTERIES, THE WORK OF SATAK 

" Doing eml, that good may comeP 

Lotteries tend fearfully to demoralize society, by 
engendering a gambling spirit in tlie young and in all 
classes, whicli does not stop here, but draws them into 
the gaming-houses and all the haunts of dissipation. 

And while some good men have been engaged in 
these undertakings, yet too often designing men have 
taken advantage of the creduhty of the people to swin- 
dle them. 

The only safe plan is to always do right, and then 
we will not have to sorrow over the results of our ex- 
ample. Not only are these lotteries now encouraged 
in many quarters, but actually defended as right. But 
let any man examine the motives which prompt him to 
buy a ticket in a lottery scheme, and he will find it a 
desire to obtain sometliing for luliicli he gives no equivalent. 
"WTierein does this differ from the motive that controls 
the tkief ? Both are a breach, in the sight of God, of 
the eighth commandment, and we trust that Christian 
men, at least, will discourage all such schemes, what- 
ever may be the pretence on which they ask your 
favor. 

No one can deny that the mental passion for gam- 
bling is as terrible and as destructive as the physical 
appetite for strong drink ; and they are, to a great ex- 
tent, concomitant or supplementary, one of the othe;\ 

9^ 



202' 



THE SWORD THAT OUTS : 




SQUABE IN DUBLIN. 

We introduce this engraving witli special reference 
to tlie lovely Charlotte Elizabeth, who held the pen of 
a heavenly writer, and whose soul was ahve — on fire — 
for a pure gospel. 

Many of her earliest and sweetest days were passed 
in Dublin. We commend her numerous writings — they 
are " apples of gold in pictures of silver." Her early 
life was marked with numerous hairbreadth escapes. 
Well-nigh, again and again, her steps took hold on 
hell ! But God, in mercy^ snatched her from thg burn- 
ing flame ! First, popery, or Satan himself, robed as 
an angel of light ; then, the fascinations of a wicked, 
licentious Shakspeare ! She tottered on the verge of 
everlasting death by poring over the pages of this be- 
witching author ! (See her " Recollections," pages 28 
and 29.) Hear her speak, open her own blessed lips. 
Though dead, she yet speaks, and will speak, forever 
and forever ! 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 203 

" I became entangled in a net of dangerous fascina- 
tion. One evening my brother was taken to the the- 
atre, while I, on account of a cold, had to stay at home. 
To compensate for this, I was permitted to read the 
play to him ; and that play was ' The Merchant of 
Venice.' I will not dwell upon the effect. I had al- 
ready become fond of such theatrical spectacles as 
were considered suitable for children — ^pantomime and 
broad farce. I, Uke-a child, gazed upon the glitter 
and enjoyed the bustle ; but now, seated in a corner, 
all quiet about me, and nothing to interfere with the 
mental world, I drank a cup of intoxication, under 
which my brain reeled for many a year. The character 
of IBhylock burst upon me, even as Shakspeare had 
conceived it. I revelled in the terrible excitement that 
it gave rise to ; page after page was stereotyped upon 
a most retentive memory mthout an effort, and during 
a sleepless night I feasted on the pernicious sweets 
thus hoarded in my brain. Pernicious, indeed, they 
were ; for from that hour my diligence in study, my 
dociUty of conduct, everything that is usually regarded 
as praiseworthy in a child, sprang from a new motive. 
I wanted to earn a reward ; and that was no longer a 
svv^eet story from the Bible, but permission to carry 
into my retreat a volume of Shakspeare. Keahty be- 
came insipid, almost hateful to me ; conversation, ex- 
cept that of literary men, a burden. I imbibed a thor- 
ough contempt for women, children, and household 
affairs, intrenching myself behind invisible barriers 



20-1 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

that few, very few, could pass. Oh, how many wasted 
hours, how much of unprofitable labor, what wrong to 
my fellow-creatures, what robbery of God, must I refer 
to this ensnarmg book ! My mind became unnerved, 
my judgment perverted, my estimate of people and 
things w^hoUy falsified, and my soul wrapped in the 
vain solace of unsubstantial enjoyments, during years 
of after sorrow, when, but for this, I might have early 
sought the consolations of the Gospel. Parents know 
not what they do, when, from vanity, thoughtlessness, 
or over-indulgence, they foster in a j^oung girl what is 
called a poetical taste. Those things highly esteemed 
among men, are held in abomination with God. They 
thrust Him from His creatures' thoughts, and en- 
shrine a host of polluting idols in His place." 

Shakspeare's morality seldom rises above the su- 
preme selfishness of the heartless world, and often 
sinks into its gTossest forms. He has exhibited ambi- 
tion, avarice, revenge, jealousy, and all the grovelling 
passions of the human soul, with all the skill of art. 
The tendency of nearly all his WTitings is to quicken 
into inordinate and morbid activity that faculty which 
phrenologists term amativeness, already strong enough 
to need firm and wise restraint. 

"What a sink of pollution, vulgarity, and licentious- 
ness is the " Merry Wives of Windsor !" His powerful 
and exciting delineations of love have, wdthout doubt, 
ruined many a soul. If those instances were recorded 
where the works of Shakspeare have had an influence, 



THE FIEE THAT BUBNS. 205 

either directly or indirectly, in exciting tlie passions to 
such an ungovernable strength, that men have been led 
into crime and misery, what an account would be 
placed to their score ! 

Friends of truth and love, when we look at this sub- 
ject in its true light, in view of eternity, of heaven, and 
of hell — of glory eternal or of misery everlasting — is it 
not marvellously strange that professed disciples of Jesus 
— ministers of the Gospel — should place the unfruitful 
works of darkness, the very devil himself, in the hands 
of the rising age ! God of grace and of mercy infinite, 
open these blind eyes and unstop these deaf ears, ere 
they go down to the pit ! " Whoso shall offend one of 
these little ones which believe in me, it w^ere better for 
him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and 
that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe 
unto the world because of offences ! for it must needs 
be that offences come ; but woe to that man by whom 
the offence cometh !" 3Iatt. xviii. 6, 7. 



TAKE UP THE STUMBLING-BLOCKS. 

When? Before a revival, or after? God says, 
" Cast ye up, cast ye up — prepare the way." Mark well, 
''prepare the way." The first thing is, then, to take up 
the stumbling-blocks, repent, make restitution, remove 
the errors, corruptions, wicked contentions, and back- 
bitings. 



206 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS 




SIN A DAGGER— TEKRIBLE ! 

Have yoii not felt it, reader, piercing your inmost 
soul ? '' Sin is a dagger, more fearful than the dagger 
of Ehud, which had two edges, of a cubit's length." 
Judges, iii. 16. 

Bitter to sin — more bitter than death. The rebel 
angels found it so ; so did our first parents ; so did Ja- 
cob, Moses, David, Solomon, Peter. The redeemed soul 
feels it keenly, heart-piercingly. Every one having 
tasted the sweets of redeeming love, sees clearly how 
hateful, abominable, God-dishonoring, soul-ruinous, 
soul-damning sin is. It's the serpent's bite, the adder's 
sting. It crucifies the Lord of glory afresh, drives the 
cruel nails, poises the bloody spear ! Oh ! what pangs 
of remorse does sin bring upon a consecrated soul ! It 
is like a dagger ! 

When Christ looked on Peter, after his denial of him, 
he went out and wept bitterly. " Even the smallest 
transgressions," says Madame Guyon, '' cannot fail to 
separate from God. The wretchedness it produces is 
inexpressible. An unguarded look, a hasty word, cost 
me bitter tears." 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 207 

DRAGGmG AND LAGGING. 

IT IS THE DRAGGINa THAT KILLS FOLKS. 

" The letter killetli^ hut the spirit giveth lifer — 2 Cor. iii. 6. 

It is the dragging that kills so many, not preaching 
or hard study. The machinery is not oiled by the 
grace of God — the Holy Spirit's sanctifying influences. 
Consequently, students, editors, ministers of the Gospel, 
superannuate, drag out a wretched imbecile life. It is 
the ^''dragging' that kills them, does the mischief — the 
lack of soul, spiritual life, holy unction, animation, 
power with God, the tongue of fire, the not breathing 
the life apostolical and pentecostal. Did Paul, Peter, 
James, or John retire fi^om their fields of labor till 
they had fought the good fight, finished their course with 
joy ? Preaching in the Spirit with power from on high 
is healthy work — the more of it the better. Instance 
the immortal Wesley, whose whole life was on the per- 
petual stretch for glory till threescore and ten. Who 
ever labored harder, studied more intensely, preached 
more constantly ? He could preach three times daily, 
with soul kindled to a flame, year in and year out, and 
then mount up on eagle's wings, or as -Elijah in a 
chariot of fire, to receive a crown that fadeth not. His 
eye, like that of Moses, was not dim, nor his natural 
force abated. 

The same is true of Whitfield, the Tenants, and other 
evangelists on mercy's wing. 



208 THE bWOED THAT CUTS : 

George MuUer, of Bristol, England, at the head of 
the Orphan Asylum^ is another bright specimen of faith 
on faith, grace on grace, high as heaven ; his whole 
being is on the altar, Christ Jesus forever and forever ! 

Look at President Finney, preaching all the winter, 
all the summer, at home and abroad; in connection 
with his theological teachings, his domestic and pas- 
toral duties. Worn out ? He grows younger every day, 
more vigorous. Preaching is his meat and his drink. 
Mark his incessant labors. Preach ? no end to his 
preaching, praying, and exhorting, no cessation day 
and night. This fighting the battles of the Lord is for 
life. Multitudes bow the knee to King Immanuel 
every year through his instrumentality. God is ^^dth 
him, gives him health and strength of body, mind, and 
soul. "Why is this ? There is no dragging. " Where 
the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." It's this 
dragging and lagging that kills everybody. Did Paul, 
superannuate, break off, keep holiday, visit the Springs, 
Catskill, Peekskill, Niagara, or cross the Atlantic? 
His soul was on fire, he flew on wings of love. Nothing 
so surely and speedily exhausts all the powers of our 
being as this dragging ; it's death in the pot ! In some 
congTegations it is drag, drag, drag ! nothing but drag ! 
It's drag on the Sabbath, in the lecture-room, prayer 
and conference meeting! Oh, what a killing state! 
awful ! No marvel ministers need rest — ^lock the doors 
of the sanctuary and run for hfe! Let the Church 
arise, put on strength, come to the help of the Lord 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 209 

against the mighty, live for God, consecratedly, unre- 
servedly, be filled with the Spirit, war a continual war- 
fare against the prince of darkness, rush for God's 
glory in the salvation of sinners. What now? any 
dragging or killing ? , , 

" The Morning Star" says : " It is the monotony that 
kills off ministers, not the work that wears like the 
regular recurrence of tasks. The mind and body fall 
into a state, in which it may be said of them they labor, 
not tvorh Eight in the old field of labor let a revival 
spring up, and the laboring minister begins to ivorh at 
once. The monotony is broken. His spirit is refreshed. 
His soul is baptized afresh. He is eager to receive the 
multitudes that perish Hke sheep without a shepherd. 
His mental development in a few days proceeds as 
much as it has done for years. His mourning is put 
aside. His vacation is at an end. But he is more re- 
cruited than any vacation before ever recruited him. 

"Oh, for the living flame 

From His own altar brought, 
To touch our lips, our souls inspire, 
And win to heaven our thought!" 



"A good name is rather to be chosen than great 
riches, and loving favor rather than silver and gold. 
The rich and poor meet together ; the Lord is the 
maker of them all. A prudent man foreseeth the evil, 
and hideth himself : but the simple pass on, and are 
punished." Prov, xxii. 1-3. 



210 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 




WATER-SKINS, OR GOAT-SKIN BOTTLES. 



These are made by stripping off tlie skin of a goat or 
kid, from tlie neck downward, w^itliout rijpping it, only 
cutting off the legs and tlie tail. The hole left by one 
of the forelegs answers the purpose of a spout, while 
the rest are tightly sewed up. It is filled by the neck, 
which is afterward tied, like the mouth of a sack. Into 
this vessel is put water, or milk and wine, which are 
kept more fresh and sweet this way than they can be in 
any other. They are used, indeed, to carry almost 
every kind of provision. Such were the wine-bottles, 
old, and rent, and bound up, of the cunning Gibeonites. 
Joshia, "ix. 4. 

These bottles our Saviour had in view, when he said, 
"Neither do men put new wine into old bottles, else 
the bottles break and the wine runneth out, and the 
bottles perish." Matt, ix. 17. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 211 



COLD WATER MAN'S BEST DRINK. 

" Water ! wat^ ! sparkling, pure, 
Giveth Nature everywhere ; 
If you drink it, I am sure, 
It will never prove a snare." 

" Water, pure and unmixed, is, beyond all question, 
the best and only natural drink of man, as it is the only 
drink of every other living being. It should be drank 
only when nature calls for it by the feeling of thirst, 
and then slowly and temperately until the thhst „is 
quenched. Follow the example of the animal creation, 
and do not stop eating to wash the food down with 
water. If man vfould live entirely upon fruits, which 
make the purest and best food, he would feel no thirst, 
and need no drink. The juices of the fruits would 
supply a sufficient quantity of water- in its purest pos- 
sible form. 

^' Of cli-inks, I know but one wMch nature owns 
As wholly suited to her several wants ; 
And this is WATER. Cold and unconcoct 
With heat or other mixture, I would give 
It fresh and sparkling from its crystal font 
To quench the thu'st of everything that lives. 



All other forms of liquid aliment. 

So called absurdly, can be good for man 

No further than the water they contain. 

Why mix it then with drugs of foreign growth, 

Coffee and tea, and other stimulants ? 

Why roam the world for base ingredients- 



212 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

To mix with that which God has made so good ; 

Unless to give the stomach harder toil 

And labor of digestion — or miless 

To plant the germs of malady and death ?" 

"Water," says an eminent writer, "is the liquor 
which God the eternal brews for his children. Not in 
the simmering still, over smoky fires, choked with 
poisonous gases, and surrounded with the stench of 
sickening odors and rank corruption, does your Father 
in heaven prepare the precious essence of life — the pure 
cold water. But in the green glade and grassy dell, 
where the red-deer wanders and the child loves to play, 
there God brews it ; and down — down in the deep val- 
ley, where the fountains murmur, and the rills sing ; and 
high on the mountain-top, where the naked granite 
glitters like gold in the sun, where the storm-clouds 
brood and the thunder-tones crash ; and far away out 
on the wide, wide sea, w^here the hurricane howls 
music, and the big. waves roar the chorus, ' sweeping 
the march of God ;' there he brews it, the beverage of 
life, health-giving water. And everywhere it is a thing 
of beauty ; gleaming in the summer rain, shining in the 
ice-gem, till the trees all seem turned to living jewels, 
spreadmg a golden veil over the setting sun, or a ^vhite 
gauze around the midnight moon ; sporting in tlie 
cataract, sleeping in the glacier, dancing in the hail- 
shower ; folding its bright snow-curtains softly about 
the wintry world ; and weaving the many-colored iris, 
that seraph's zone of the sky, whose woof is the 



THE FIEE THAT BUENS. 213 

sunbeam of heaven, all checked over with celestial 
flowers by the mystic hands of refi'action. Still always 
it is beautiful— that blessed life-water! No poison 
bubbles on its brink ; its foam brings not madness and 
mui'der ; no blood stains its liquor-glass ; pale widows 
and starving orphans weep not burning tears in its 
clear depths ; no drunkard's shrieking ghost curses it 
from the grave in words of eternal despair! Speak 
out, my friends, would you exchange it for that demon's 
drink— alcohol?" 



HAS THE OFFENCE OF THE CROSS CEASED? 

Does not our Saviour tell us, all that will live godly 
in Christ Jesus sliall suffer persecution? How is it, 
then, that the offence of the cross has ceased? How is 
it that some ministers can preach the Gospel year out 
and year in, and experience no persecution ? Is it be- 
cause there are no sins to rebuke ? or is it because they 
keep back part of the price — shun to declare the Vv^hole 
counsel of God ? The world's definition of a good man 
is, "he has no enemies." But what saith the Saviour? 
" Woe unto you when all men shall speak well of you ! 
for so did their fathers to the false prophets," not the 
true prophets. Is it because there are no sins to re- 
buke ? Would to God it were so ; but let a man step 
forward into the front ranks of reform, attack all the 
popular sins of the present day, and he will find a host 
to rise up against him, and persecution will rage. 



214 THE SWOKD THAT CUTS : 



INTEMPERANCE IN EATING. 

" * Give us this day our daily bread,' 
And pies and cakes besides ; 
To load the stomach, pain the head, 
And choke the vital tides." 

1. Intemperance is a crime against ourseht^s. No 
man has a right to do anything unworthy of himseK, or 
to injure himself. God gave us a soul, and we can 
make it beautiful. It is a crime to tarnish it. 

2. Intemperance is a crime against others, against 
all whom we can influence. 

3. It is a crime against God. 

It is a wicked waste of time and money, a consuming 
God's bounty on lust, that ought to be expended in 
doing good. Health is sacrificed — a pure conscience. 
Every one is solemnly bound to redeem time, study the 
strictest economy and simplicity in his dietetic habits. 
Every moment of time, every farthing of God's money 
that can possibly be redeemed by rigid self-denial, 
by strict, uniformly temperate habits, should be re- 
deemed for purposes of benevolence, deeds of charity 
and mercy. 

Beware, ye time-killers, ye consumers of God's 
bounty on lust, the gratification of a depraved, carnal 
appetite; take heed to yourselves, lest at any time 
your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunk- 
enness, and cares of this life, and so the day of retribu- 
tion come upon you unawares. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 215 

"• Voluptuous man ! s%ted- with nature's boons, 
With dishes tortured from their native taste, 
And mad variety, to spur beyond 
Its wiser will the jaded appetite ! 
Is this for pleasure? Learn a juster time ; 
And know, true temperance is'luxuiy," 

We eat too mncli, more than our stomachs can well 
digest ; and for it we are duly punished. When the 
stomach is imposed on, it sooner or later rebels, and 
disease is the consequence — disease in its most disa- 
greeable form, dyspepsia.^ 

There are more people who destroy themselves by 
eating, than by drinking alcoholic stimulants. What 
shall we say of the stomach debilitated by its continued 
efforts to reduce the enormous masses of food, half 
masticated, that are forced into it for a momentary 
gratification ? Can we expect the blood to be pure or 
the stomach sound, that is treated three or four times 
every day with unhealthy indigestibles ? If you want 
to stupify a brilliant mind, stuff the stomach ; but if 
you want it to do work so that its corruscations may 

* Mankind, not only the sick, but those in health, need to learn 
that the laws that relate to our physical existence are as inexorable 
and certain in their operation as those that govern the planets in 
their orbits. Many are suddenly prostrated by partaking of food in 
improper quantities or of poor quality. Very few are aware of the 
deleterious effects, even upon the healthy constitution, of the habit 
of partaking habitually of unhealthy food, or of overtaxing the di- 
gestive organs by over-eating or eating too frequently. Yery many 
there are, to use a homely expression, " who dig their graves with 
their teeth." 



216 THE SWOKD THAT CUTS: 

be seen of men, let the body be nourished with light, 
pleasant food, that is thoroughly masticated before it 
is finally deposited for assimilation. 

If you would live long and be exempt from disease, 
resolve, " henceforth and forever,'* to eat just food 
enough to sustain life, and no more. In other words, 
eat to live, and not live to eat. 

*' Life's hours are short and few, 
As transitory as the morning clew.** 

** *Tis meet that they should be 

Well spent ; for oh ! if wasted, th-ey but bring 
A present cloy, and, for their closing time, 
Treasm-e remorse, the spirit's deathless sting." 

A French writer is represented as calling dj^spepsia 
*^ the remorse of a guilty stomach." Paul understood 
this, when he said, " I keep my body under, and bring 
it into subjection : lest that by any means when I have 
preached to others, I myseK should be a castaway." 
1 Cor, ix. 27. *' He that striveth for the mastery is 
temperate in all things." 

Much of our conduct depends, no doubt, upon the 
character of the food we eat. Perhaps, indeed, the 
nature of our meals governs the nature of our impulses 
more than we are inclined to admit, because none of us 
relish well the abandonment of our idea of free agency. 
Bonaparte used to attribute the loss of one of his bat- 
tles to a poor dinner, which at the time disturbed his 
digestion. How many of our misjudgments and errors 
may be owing to a cause of the same character ! 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 



217 




SICK FOLKS, AISTD FOLKS NOT SICK. 



DRUGGmO AND KILLLNG BY INCHES. 

" 'Arise and walk, take up thy bed V 
At once he did as Jesus said. 
And from disease was free." 

Some there are wlio question the propriety of drug- 
ging the stomach to expel disease. Medicine itself 
produces disease. The stomach was made to receive 
and digest nutriment, not drugs. These are, therefore, 
unnatural and unfitted to that important organ of the 
animal economy. When the physical machinery be- 
comes deranged, strange that by re-deranging it with 
drugs w^e may put it in order ! When one is sick, the 
philosophy seems to be — make him sicker, that he may 

10 



218 THE SAYORD THAT CUTS : 

get well ! This notion is akin to that of the Pharisees, 
who said, " This fellow doth not cast out devils but by 
Beelzebub the prhice of devils," — that is, he cast down 
one evil spirit to cast another out ! So the old doctor 
casts down a fearful disease, in the shape of drugs, to 
cast another, often much less dangerous, out ! This old 
theory, standing alone, with few if any facts to sustain 
it, is passing away, and well may the world rejoice. 
Even Dr. Franklin laid the foundation for this refor- 
mation, when he wrote among his proverbs, " God 
cures, and the doctor takes the fees." 

But many say of us, who refuse to force poison upon 
the stomach, '^ You reject moans." Nay, verily. We 
only ask, are these nostrums good means of restora- 
tion ? To us they seem to be means of increased dis- 
ease and death, rather than health and life. The world 
has been, and still is, full of sophistry on this point. 
Everything claiming to be means is not genuine. 
Reason would, that we inquire into the facts of the 
case ere we swallow that which our erring fellow-men 
may call a good medicine. Sometimes the best means 
to accomplish an end — is to do nothing. Certainly, a 
good way always to begin, is to " cease to do evil." 
Then may we " learn to do well." One of Paul's 
means to relieve the affrighted jailer was, " Do thy- 
self no harm." An experienced horticulturist in North- 
ern Illinois once remarked, that the way to grow 
peaches in that cold latitude was '* not to try." By 
this he meant, don't cultivate, and hasten the growth 



THE riEE THAT BUENS. 219 

of the tree ; but let the grass, briers, etc., retard and 
harden it, that it may endure the winter and blossom 
late in the spring. So, it not unfrequently happens 
that officiousness at the sick-bed is the means, not of 
relief, but aggravated pain, and even death. One 
thing, at least, must be evident, that credulity, not in- 
telligent faitli, seizes upon a nostrum simply because 
an interested ignoramus calls it a cure-all. Not less 
evident is it, that the afflicted who decline drugs, do 
not, of necessity, igTiore means. The Lord can bless 
the simplest means, or no means, for our restoration. 
Never rely on means or an arm of flesh for a cure, but 
on God, the giver of all good. " Every good and every 
perfect gift is from above." 

All means, all doctors are unavailing, without the ac- 
companying blessing of the Most High. Wait on God ; 
seek wisdom from above. " Without me," says Christ, 
" ye can do nothing." " In all thy ways acknowledge 
Him, and He shall direct thy paths." Header, are you 
ill? What now? Speed, post-haste, to an earthly 
physician ? Stay, mortal, stay ! ask God what to do ; 
ask counsel first of Him in whom you live, move, have 
your being. Honor God, and God will honor you. 
Why was God displeased with King Asa in the thirty- 
ninth year of his reign, when his " disease was exceed- 
ing great ?" Because, in his disease, " he sought not 
to the Lord, but to the physicians." (See 2 Ghron. 
xvi. 12.) 



220 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

THE STOMACH— THE MIND— THE SOUL. 

TEMPERANCE IN ALL THINGS. 

" Oh, madness ! to think the use of strongest tea, 
And strongest drinks our chief support of health, 
When God, with these forbidden, made choice to rear 
His mighty champion, strong bej^ond compare, 
Whose drink was only from the liquid brook.'^ 

Millions on millions are expended on tea, that might 
go and should go for salvation, light spiritual, light 
everlasting. Multitudes are as much in bondage, and 
perhaps as great slaves to tea or coffee, as others are 
to strong drink and tobacco ! 

Wesley says : " After talking largely with both men 
and women leaders, we agreed it would prevent great 
expense, as well of health as of time and of money, if the 
poorer people of our society could be persuaded to 
leave off drinking tea. "We resolved ourselves to begin 
and set the example. I expected some difficulty in 
breaking off a custom of six-and-twenty years' standing. 
And accordingly, the three first days my head ached, 
more or less, all day long, and I was half asleep from 
morning to night. The third day, on Wednesday, in 
the afternoon, my memory failed almost entirely. In 
the evening I sought my remedy in prayer. On Thurs- 
day morning my headache was gone ; my memory was 
as strong as ever ; and I have found no inconvenience, 
but a sensible benefit in several respects, from that very 
day to this." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 221 

" He liveth long who liveth well ; 
All other life is short and vain : 
He liveth longest who can tell 
Of living most for heavenly gain." 

Man kno^vs not, nor ever dreams, how constantly the 
goodness of his Creator is acting to redeem him from 
the effects of his transgressions ! Vv hen the day is spent 
in continued abuses of his body — in the habitual viola- 
tion of the laws of life — and when night comes, and he 
is lost in sleep, and ceases from his sins — and though 
the hand of God, in unremitting kindness and parental 
mercy, directs and urges those renovating processes of 
the vital powers, by which the injuries his system has 
received from his vicious practices are so nearly repaired 
that he awakes and rises to another day, and feels as 
fresh and vigorous as at yestermorn — yet he will not be- 
lieve that tea, tobacco, alcohol, and other poisonous 
and improper substances which he indulged in yester- 
day, did him any harm ; and thus, for the benevolence 
of God, who w^atches over him with unceasing care, and 
by every means which can be brought to act upon his 
moral susceptibilities, endeavors to reclaim him from 
his sins, he only returns that strange perverseness, 
which, in disobeying God, destroys himself. 

Physiology, the laws of life and health, should be 
taught in our schools, first, midst, last, always. 

*' I wonder how such folks can say 
They, have religion eveiy day, 
And love the Lord, and love to pray, 
When they His money throw away." 



222 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

THE WORLD UPSIDE DOWN. 

V A SLAVE TO THIS, A SLAVE TO THAT. 

" ' Break every yoke,' the Gospel cries, 
' And let the oppressed go free ;' 
Let every burdened captive rise, 
And taste sweet Liberty." 

Your tea, brother, are you not as ranch a slave to it 
as the tippler is to his morning dram, his wine-cup, or 
brandy-bottle, or as the tobaccomonger is to his pipe 
and his quid? ''Does this affect my salvation?" Sal- 
vation, indeed! Talk about salvation, meanwhile 
wedded to an evil habit — the lust of appetite. " Know 
ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to 
obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey, whether of 
sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness ?" 
Rom, vi. 16. 

" Every man that striveth for the mastery is temper- 
ate in all things. And if a man also strive for master- 
ies, yet is he not crowned except he strive lawfully." 
2 Tim, ii. 5. 

Whence your fidgety and rickety spells, your often 
doubts touching your safe and joyful "admission into 
the everlasting kingdom?" Tour nervous system is 
affected injuriously by the use of this narcotic, to which 
you are a slave ! The taste or habit of tea-drinking is 
unnatural, and acquired, as much so as a relish for the 
intoxicating bowl, or the vile " Indian weed." Look at 
your example, also ; consider the millions expended to 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 223 

gratify a perverted taste, worse than useless, that ought 
to go to build up the Eedeemer's kingdom, not Satan's ; 
to save souls, and not destroy them. Brother, break 
loose from this tyrant, and be a freeman. What! 
pi^ach to sinners to repent, put away their evil deeds, 
be '* temperate in all things," and yourself a bond- 
slave — an idolater! Awful! "Physician, heal thy- 
self." "Thou that preachest a man should not steal, 
dost thou steal?" 

Mothers, what are you doing ? allowing your " little 
ones" to sip their tea at meal-times, acquire a vicious 
habit that will prove a curse in time and jeopard their 
souls eternally ! Stop ! stop ! this wickedness ; stop 
and think before you further go. 

Little folks ^ one loord to you, and toe are done. What 
say you ? with the " Try Company ?'' 

" No tea nor coffee do we diink, 
Tobacco we despise ; 
And liquor as a beverage 
Ke'er comes before our eyes. 

" So we're a happy, healthy band, 
Our minds are bright and clear ; 
No awful di-eams at night we have. 
And ti-emor we don't fear. 

" We have escaped from Satan's snares — 
In this respect at least ; 
And while others go to early graves, 
We still remain to feast." 



" Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue, keepeth 
his soul from troubles," Prov, xxi. 23. 



224 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS I 




ON! ON! 

Take the aggressive ? By all means. On, on ! load 
and^ e ! storm the fort ! 

It will never do to stand merely on the defensive. 
The age of " apologies" is past. Cunning opponents 
still martial their difficulties, and would have all work 
pause until they are answered. No such thing. De- 
fend is well enough ; but attack is better. We have a 
thousand salient points in the world's folly and sin, 
and we are to assail them in front. '' The army that 
stays in its trenches is a beaten army," according to a 
great master of the art of war ; and the same is true 
of a Church and a minister. The great Fathers, Ke- 
formers, and Preachers were all aggressive. Charge ! 
charge ! is the word all along the line. 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 225 

A TRAP OF SATAN, OR SATAN'S TRAPS. 

TAPERING OFF, QUITTING BY DEGREES — OR SINNING LITTLE LESS 
TO-DAY, LITTLE LESS TO-MORROW. 

*' The moments fly — a minute's gone ! 
The minutes fly — an hour is run ! 
The day is fled — the night is here ; 
Thus flies a week — a month — a year !" 

Tapeeing off are you, reader — quitting sin gradually, 
little by little ; giving up your pride, covetousness, self- 
will, worldly conformity, pleasure-seeking, foolish talk- 
ing and jesting, by degrees — little by little ? Swearing 
a little less, stealing and defrauding a little less, lying, 
deceiving, and playing the hypocrite a little less to-day 
and a little less to-morrow, and so on ? Is this Gospel ? 
Is there the slightest apology for sin of any kind, or 
the least particle of license granted to indulge it a 
single moment, in the Bible, from Genesis to Revela- 
tion ? All the precepts recorded in the holy Scriptures, 
touching repentance, faith in the Lord Jesus, and a 
holy life, are in the present, now. " Noio is the accepted 
time, now is the day of salvation." 

" Lose this day loitering — 'twill be the same story 
To-morrow, and the next more dilatory ; 
The indecision brings its own delays, 
And days are lost lamenting over days." 

This tapering off, or quitting evil habits of any kind, 
little by little, is the last and most uncertain way of all 
others. How many have tried it again and again, and as 

10^ 



226 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

often found themselves more deeply involved in guilt and 
thraldom than before. Some try to taper oil from tlie 
use of intoxicating liquor, the poisonous "Indian weed," 
strong tea and coffee, and the effort is almost invariably 
vain and futile. Some quit chewing the vile narcotic, 
and try to taper off with the pipe or cigar, and soon 
they find themselves slaves to both. Friend, beware of 
this trap of Satan. Never was there a more subtle and 
successful snare than this ; the devil, sin, and the un- 
renewed heart are always pleading for a little more 

time. 

" There is a little miscliief-making 

Elfin, who is ever nigh, 
Thwarting every undertaking, 

And his name is By-and-by. 
' Wliat we ought to do this minute, 

Will be better done,' he'll cry, 
* If to-morrow we begin it — 

Pat it off,' says By-and-by." 

" All delays, half-hearted resolutions, and half-way 
reforms are so many triumphs to our enemies ; for 
while they encourage us to hope for victory, they only 
deceive us and make us think we are doing something 
when we are doing nothing. ' Break off your sins,' is 
the language of the Bible, ' cease to do evil' — make 
speedy and thorough work of it. The man who saj^s 
he will try, or is only trying to cease from an evil 
habit by a gradual process, is not more than half re- 
solved on quitting. A full and hearty determination to 
quit now — to touch not, taste not, handle not, hence- 
forth and forever, at every risk, is more than half the 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 227 

work of reform from any evil. Sin cannot be tampered 
witli — we must make an entire break with it, or be over- 
come by it." 

** Be earnest — stop not, no delay — 
Act in the present hour : 
Yea, act ; and acting, humbly pray 
That God would give thee power." 

Now is the accepted time. Do it now ; break loose 
from Satan's chains now. There is no apology for sin 
a single moment ! Cease to do evil, learn to do well — 
when ? Kepent of yonr sins — when ? Believe on Jesus 
— when? Oh, man, make haste, speed! Make haste, 
run ! Fly on wings of obedience ; delay not ; death is 
at the door ; to-morrow you may be in hell ! 

" 'Tis not the want of time, nor means, nor good intent, 
That has these millions to perdition sent ; 
But 'tis the Siren, who, his victim to betray, 
Persuades, with honeyed words, repentance to delays 



ANGELIC PERFECTION. 

Who ever saw it, who believes it ? Angelic perfec- 
* tion belongs to angels — Christian perfection to Chris- 
tians. " This is the will of God, even your sanctifica- 
tion." 

Do not confound angehc with Christian perfection. 
Uninterrupted transports of praise, and ceaseless rap- 
tures of joy, do not belong to Christian, but to angehc 
perfection. 



228 THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



WHAT A LIE! WHAT A LIE! 

Awful ! What ! talk about growing in grace and in 
the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, 
and at the same time disobey God, neglect positive and 
known duty ! Oh ! oh ! what" presumption — heaven- 
daring ! Man, how dare you face the Almighty thus ? 
Are you not afraid of His thunderbolts ? the lightning 
flash of His hot displeasure ? Grow in grace with up- 
lifted arm of rebellion stiff-neckedly ! Shocking ! 

Friend, jou are not even in a justified state ; every 
step of yours is retrograde, down, doivv, down, instead 
of up and on, up and on ! 

No one can possibly be growing in gxace, advancing 
a single step heavenward, or be in a justified state, while 
disobeying any one of the divine precepts. " The little 
foxes destroy the tender vines." 

" A little theft, a small deceit, 
Too often leads to more." 

" He that is faithful in that which is least, is faithful 
also in much ; and he that is unjust in the least, is un- 
just also in much." 

" Little things — ay, little things, 
Make np the sum of life." 

Justification presupposes obedience in all things, a 
walk and conversation strictly Gospel, the peace of 
God passing all understanding. Justification is grace, 
mighty, superabounding, all-conquering ! '' Therefore, 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 229 

being justified by faith, we have peace viith God 
tlirough our Lord Jesus Christ : by whom also we have 
access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and 
rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only so, 
but we glory in tribulations also ; knowing that tribula- 
tion worketh patience ; and patience, experience ; and 
experience, hope ; and hope maketh not ashamed ; be- 
cause the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by 
the Holy Ghost which is given unto us." Bom, v. 1-5. 

Reader, think you that growing in grace is a gradual 
sanctification ? becoming less and less sinful ? sinning 
a little less to-day, a little less to-morrovv ? Any Gos- 
pel here ? When and where does God palliate sin, or 
countenance it, in His Book of books, from Genesis to 
Eevelation, an instant ? Breaking off sin entirely by 
righteousness is a noio business — henceforth emd/oi^ever 
" cease to do evil, learn to do well." "WT.ien? 

President A. Mahan, in his " True Believer,'' remarks 
thus : " Growing in gTace does not, as is commonly 
supposed, imply progressive sanctification ; that is, that 
v/e continually become less and less sinful, and in a 
corresponding degree more and more holy. 

" This I infer from the following reasons : 

"We have, according to this construction of the 
command 'grow in grace,' a positive precept in the 
Bible to give up sin gradually, and consequently pro- 
hibiting our giving up sin all at once. To become by 
degrees less and less sinful, is to give up sin gradually. 
If this is the meaning of the command ' grow in grace,' 



230 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

we have a jjositive precept requiring a gradual, and, 
of course, prohibiting an immediate renunciation of all 
sin. Who can believe that the Bible contains such a 
requirement as this ? On this supposition the precepts 
of the Bible are directly contradictory the one to the 
other. For Ave have many precepts requiring us to re- 
nounce all sin at once and forever. Who can suppose 
that an inspired apostle has been guilty of the absurd- 
ity of requiring us to become less and less sinful ? We 
must contmually grow in the grace and knowledge of 
Christ, or lose the degree of grace already possessed. 
Life is a continued grow^th in holiness, with all of its 
appropriate accompaniments. We must be more and 
more blessed in Christ, or we cannot continue to be 
blessed in Him at all. We must abound in love more 
and more, or lose what w^e have already attained. The 
moment we become stationary, the love of God ceases 
to be ' shed abroad in the soul by the Holy Spirit that 
is given us.' 

" To aim to grow in grac3, in any sense which implies 
a gradual renunciation of sin, is nothing but a growth 
in sin itself. Thus it is that the doctrine of imperfec- 
tion has perverted the conceptions of the Church in 
respect to the most important truths and principles of 
the Gospel, and has left her in the snare of the devil." 



Liars !~ " He that saith, I know^ Him, and keepeth 
not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not 
in him." 



THE FIRE THAT BUENS. 



231 





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TRAINING LITTLE FOLKS FOR JESUS. 

" Train up a child in the icay lie should go, and ichen Iw is old he will 

not depart from itP 

That's the way, parents, '' The way the holy prophets 
went." " I can't," say you ? Yes, you can, if you will : 
God says so ; and what God says is true, invariably 
and forever ! Can't obey God in household duty ? 



232 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

False ! We say you can. Joshebed did ; Abraham 
did ; Hannah, the mother of Samuel, did ; Zacharias 
and Ehzabeth did ; the mother and grandmother of 
little Timothy did — and multitudes since their day. 
God holds you to it. Life, death, salvation, damna- 
tion, heaven or hell, knock at your door. What, pro- 
fess holiness to the Lord, and your children on the 
way to hell ? Oh, oh ! " Charity begins at home." 

Home-work first, home-work all the time. Perfect 
love, indeed ! Why not, then, set your OAvn house in 
order ; begin where all perfect love begins ; keep the 
family altar burning brightly, morning and evening — 
train your household in the fear and v>^isdom of God, 
orderly, circumspectly ? 

" Keep the family altar burning, 
Let the sacred flame be bright ; 
Gather round it in the morning, 
Gather round it every night. 

" Keep the family altar burning ; 
Let the children all be there, 
That they may receive the blessing 
At the sacred hour of prayer." 

This professing perfect love, entireness in Jesus, as 
you do publicly, time after time, while your children 
are growing up baptized infidels, wicked, foolish, and 
vain, is awful ! The very first step in perfect love is 
at home — around the fireside, up-stairs and down- 
stairs, in the kitchen, in the parlor. Tou may preach 
and preach with angel tongue, pray and pray till 
doomsday, exhort till your throat is dried, your whole 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 233 

being skeletonized, threadbare, till superannuated, laid 
on the shelf, boasting meanwhile of your exalted 
piety — what avail ? Who believes you, when sin, in neg- 
lecting family duty, stares you full in the face, and the 
cry, *' Physician, heal thyself," rings in your ears? 

What is perfect love ? Holiness ? Yes, holiness. 
Well, what is holiness ? Obeying God ? To be sure — 
respecting all his commandments ; and what command- 
ment is more positive, binding, indispensable than this, 
'' Train up a child in the way he should go, and when 
he is old he v/ill not depart from it ?" 

" Call the children early, parent, 
Give the little lambs thy care ; 
See that they are folded safe." 

Not so with you. You obey not' the heavenly call— 
your children, to all appearance, are as far from God, 
truth, and love, as the east is from the west, as heaven 
is fi'om hell ! They have very little, if any, respect, 
even for the outward forms of religion. When you 
summon your household to family prayers daily, morn- 
ing and evening, as you should, where are your " little 
ones ?" present, hush as heaven, innocent as doves, 
meek, humble, quiet, peaceful, orderly, gentle, smilingly 
obedient, bowing the knee with godly fear and rev- 
erential awe, lifting thek " tiny" hands and hearts 
prayerfully at the throne of mercy (what sight more 
lovely !) — or, are they " helter-skelter," " wild asses' 
colts," disturbing the whole community, upheaving, 
upturning, and overturning — ;scampering hither and 



234 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

thither? Read, pray, give thanks around the family 
altar, or at table, in confusion worse confused — a little 
bedlam ! God is a God of order — to be feared and 
had in reverence by all about Him. They that wor- 
ship Him, must worship Him in spirit and in truth, 
and in the beauty of holiness. " God is not mocked : 
for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." 
" Be more ready to hear than give the sacrifice of 
fools." 

Then, at your table, parent — how is it ? Quiet, or- 
derly, peaceful, clock-work ? Are your children cour- 
teous, cheerful, sweet, heavenly — olive-plants around 
your table, God-fearing? Do they eat whatever is set 
before them thankfully, asking no questions, exhibiting 
whatsoever is true, honest, just, pure, lovely, and of 
good report ? 

A Christian family should be what? A picture of 
beauty exquisite, an Eden, a Paradise below, the enter- 
ing of heaven's gate, the topstone angelic. 

" The lambs of Jesus, they are meek ; 
The words of peace and truth they speak." 

Beloved, begin at home — obey the Lord in household 
duty, train your " little ones" gospeily. What then ? 
Preach ? your children preach? Unquestionably, every 
one, from the least to the greatest, should preach ; 
every look, thought, word, action, moving muscle should 
preach righteousness, justice, mercy, truth, brotherly- 
kindness, charity. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 235 

" O'er the head of listeniug childi'en, 
Christ his sweetest blessing gave ; 
Little hands may aid his mission, 
A dying world to saye." 

Then, one word on " perfect love" from your lips 
would speak volumes — tell on time, on eternity, be as a 
flint, a hammer, a nail in a sure place, " a word in sea- 
son." " By thy words shalt thou be justified, and by 
thy words shalt thou be condemned." Consistency is a 
jewel. Practise what you preach, and preach what 
you practise, " If any provide not for his own, and 
especially for those of his own house, he hath denied 
the faith, and is worse than an infidel." 1 Tim. v. 8. 

" If a man know not how to rule his own house, 
how shall he take care of the Church of God ?" 1 Tim. 
iii. 4, 5. 

'' Let us, therefore," says Paul, " as many as be per- 
fect, be thus minded. . . . Whereunto we have at- 
tained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the 
same thing. Brethren, -be followers together of me, 
and mark them who walk so, as ye have us for an en- 
sample — for many walk, of whom I have told you often, 
and now tell you even weeping, that they are the en- 
emies of the cross of Christ." 

" 'Tis not a cause of small import 

A holy life demands ; . v 

But what might fill an angel's heart, 
And filled the Saviour's hands." 

Beloved, you see the inconsistency of parents pro- 
fessing entire sanctification, holiness to the Lord, while 



236 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

at the same time tliey are living in open disobedience 
to a plain, positive precept ! Is it a marvel that very- 
many scout the idea of perfect love, when they see 
even ministers of the gospel professing it, who do not 
exhibit its fruits in training their children in the way 
they should go ? 

It is one thing to profess sanctification, and quite 
another thing to live sanctification. Our walk must 
accord with our profession. Holiness, to be holiness, 
must be Bible holiness, complete, perfectly symmetri- 
cal, God-hke, Christ-like. " Every man that hath this 
hope in him, purifieth himself even as he is pure." 
What saith God to Abraham ? " Walk before me, and 
be thou perfect." 

" Let us, to perfect love restored, 
Thy image here retiieve, 
And in the knowledge of our Lord, 
The life of angels live." 



How early should we expect the conversion of our 
children ? Just as early as we begin to labor and pray 
in earnest for it. The heathen mother takes her babe 
to the idol temple, and teaches it to clasp its little 
hands before its forehead in the attitude of prayer, 
long before it can utter a word. Christian mothers, 
why is it that so many children grow up in this enlight- 
ened land without learning to pray ? 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 237 



THE GIFT OF GIFTS— A SPECIAL GIFT. 

" Rich dews of grace come o'er us, 
In many a gentle shower ; 
And brighter scenes before us, 
Are opening every hour." 

The gift of all gifts — the gift of prayer, tlie spirit of 
prayer. What is it — what its value? Can you tell, 
reader, how precious this gift is — the gift of prayer, 
the spirit of prayer — to have power Avith God, as Jacob 
had, to prevail with the Almighty ? Such a gift cannot 
be valued with the gold of Ophir, the precious onyx, or 
the sapphire. Man knoweth not the price of it ; silver 
cannot purchase it, neither gold, millions on millions ! 
A man that prays well, prevailingly, preaches vrell, lives 
well — a man that prays in the Spirit, always, with all 
prayer and supplication, watching thereto with all per- 
severance and supplication for all saints, is a holy man, 
a consecrated man, a very useful man. To have a 
spirit of prevailing prayer with God, we must live in 
the Spirit, ivalh in the Spirit, crucify the affections and 
lusts, live soberly, righteously, godly, " lift up holy 
hands everywhere, present the body a living, conthmal 
sacrifice." No one can pray this acceptable, prevail- 
ing prayer in the Spirit, while regarding iniquity in the 
hegtrt,. hving in pride, lust, self-conceit, worldly con- 
formity. '' If any man love the world, the love of the 
Father is not in him." 



238 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

'' He that turneth away from hearing the law, even 
his prayer shall be an abomination." 

" Whatsoever we ask, we receive of Him, because we 
keep His commandments, and do those things that are 
pleasing in His sight." John, iii. 22. To pray in the 
Holy Spirit prevailingly, our bodies must be temples 
of the Holy Spirit — every idol cast out. We must, as 
the apostle says, *' have boldness to enter into the 
holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living 
way which He hath consecrated for us, . . . draw- 
ing near with a true heart, in full assurance of faith ; 
having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, 
and our bodies washed with pure water." 
' The only way to obtain this precious, inestimable 
gift of gifts — the spirit of prevailing prayer with God, 
that takes no denial — is to live wholly for God, conse- 
cratedly ; abstaining not merely from evil, but from 
the very appearance of it. 

Who ever knew any one in the full enjoyment of this 
gift of gifts, the most precious of all gifts — a spirit of 
prevailing prayer — with a heart of lust, pride, covet- 
ousness, self-conceit — a sensuahst, a slave to appetite 
and passion, a wine-bibber, an habitual chewer, snuffer, 
or a smoker of the vile Indian weed ; with one tipped 
off in gay fashionable costume, in gewgaws, artificials, 
tinkling ornaments, gold, pearls, and costly array ; with 
novel-readers, pleasure-seekers, or those who grind 
the faces of the poor ? As soon expect the Holy 
Spirit to take up His residence in the silver shrines of 



THE FIRE THAT BUEN3. 239 

Demetrius, in gods of silver, gods of gold, of wood, of 
stone, the work of men's hands. " Know ye not, that 
to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his ser- 
vants ye are to whom ye obey, whether of sin unto 
death, or of obedience unto righteousness?" 

David, the sweet singer of Israel, had this blessed 
gift — the spirit of prevailing prayer. How did he get 
it, retain it? Hark ! "I have refrained my feet from 
every evil way, that I might keep thy word." " I will 
wash my hands in innocency ; so will I compass thine 
altar, O Lord, that I may publish with the voice of 
tlianksgiving, and tell of all thy wondi^ous vforks." 
Psalm xxvi. 6, 7. Reader, vv^ill you have this gift of 
all gifts, the most precious, this blessed, superlative, 
crowning gift of prevailing prayer with God? Live 
icliolly for God ; come out, be separate, touch not the 
unclean thing ; lay all upon God's altar, keep it there 
forever. Then you will rejoice evermore, pray without 
ceasing, prevailingly, and in everything give thanks. 

" ISTor prayer is made on earth alone — 
The Holy Spirit pleads ; 
And Jesus, on tli' eternal throne, 
For sinners intercedes. 

" O Thou, by whom we come to God — 
The Life, the Truth, the Way ! 
The path of prayer Thyself hast trod — 
Lord, teach ushoio to pray I'"" 



" Every way of a man is right in his own eyes : but 
the Lord ponder eth the hearts." Prov, xxi. 2. 



240 



IHE SWOED THAT CUTS 







A TURKISH SCENE. 



Blind folks — spiritually blind. " If our Gospel be 
hid, it is hid to them that are lost : in whom the god 
of this world hath blinded the minds of them which 
believe not, lest the light of the glorious Gospel of 
Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto 
them." 

Reader, take your map and glance at the Turkish 
dominions, and behold the dark spots ! And yet, this 
moral desolation is but a speck compared to the multi- 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 241 

tudes " sitting in darkness and in the region and 
shadow of death !" There are more than 600,000,000 
of the children of men that have not yet heard of our 
blessed Gospel. Are you burning to testify of the love 
of Christ ? 

" Oh that all the world but knew Him, 
And would be advised by me ; 
Sm-ely, thej^ w^ould hasten to Him, 
He could make them all to see." 

Friend, if you have experienced the love of Jesus 
Christ, if His ^^righteousness, peace, and joy in the 
Holy Ghost" lives within you, it has, doubtless, led 
you to testify to those around you, and to those more 
distant, concerning the dear Saviour. 

Our testimony is, that the Gospel is worth telling to 
the heathen. What thinkest thou, rich friend, into 
whose hands God is giving hundreds or thousands of 
dollars, yearly, more than' thy necessities require ? 
Would it not be well for thee to invest thy surplus 
funds in missionary stock ? What is your testimony ? 
Soon your stewardship will be ended, and those rent- 
moneys, dividends, etc., will be received by other 
hands. Then how will the Great Judge approve of 
the manner in which you have witnessed for Him ? 
Will He say " Well done," to you? '^ Inasmuch as ye 
did it unto one of the least of these, ye did it unto 
me?" Are you denying yourself some comfortable 
things which you might lawfully enjoy, for the sake of 
having a little to send the Bible to the heathen ? 

11 



242 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



A REVIVAL OF THE LORD— THE LORD'S REVIVAL. 

Must have it! Else we are dead men — dead and 
damned ! 

" Lord, revive us ; all our strengtli must come from 
Thee." 

"Ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not 
silence." Iscl Ixii. 6. Tou want a revival of the Lord, 
a revival that is a revival. Are you praying for this 
revival, friend — a revival of God, full of faith, love, and 
the Holy Spirit, pentecostal, that will clear away the 
rubbish of sin, all refuges of lies — soul-purifying, soul- 
redeeming ? A revival that will tell constantly on the 
daily walk, banish pride, covetousness, idolatry, will- 
worship, intemperance, oppression, time-serving, man- 
fearing, everything inconsistent with Gospel purity, or 
that is holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sin 
and sinners? Will anything short of this meet the 
emergencies of the day ? 

Eeader, will you aim directly and immediately at 
such a revival, pray for it, labor for it, live for it, be- 
lieve for it, unceasingly, till it come overpoweringly ? 
make Jerusalem a praise in all the earth ? Without 
such a revival w^hat can w^e do as individuals, families, 
churches, communities ? We are lost, lost ! Such a 
revival we must have. 

This is what Christ came for, suffered for, died for, 
rose for, ascended for, intercedes for, strives for by His 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 243 

Holy Spirit. Christ came to destroy the works of the 
devil, seek and save that which was lost. This pente- 
costal revival, this salvation from all sin, this restoring 
the Eden lost, was the sole object of Christ's mission. 
" Go 3"e into all the world, and preach the Gospel to 
every creature." It is revivals, pure, unadulterated, 
the outpouring of God's Spirit pentecostally, that 
will scatter to the four winds every sin, every crying 
abomination, everything contrary to the will of God, 
the spirit of the Bible. 

Nothing else will restore Christian love and confi- 
dence among church-members. Nothing but such a 
revival can restore it, and nothing else ought to restore 
it. There is no other possible way to wake up that 
love of Christians for one another, which is sometimes 
felt when they have such love as they cannot express. 
You cannot have such love without confidence; and 
you cannot restore confidence without such evidence 
of piety as is seen in a revival. 

" Delay not, delay not ; the Spirit of Grace, 

Long grieved and resisted, may take His sad flight, 
And leave thee in darkness to finish thy race — 
To sink in the gloom of eternity's night." 

"We repeat again and again, renew the interrogation 
— how ? in what way is this genuine Gospel overflow- 
ing of God's Spirit to be obtained ? By preaching to 
sinners over a dead Church — cold-hearted, formal, 
proud, worldly-minded, fashionable, covetous, sensual, 
pleasure-seeking ? Is this the way ? "We tell you nay ; 



244 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

you wear out your lungs for naught. How then ? re- 
pent ? Yes, repent, make confession, restitution, do 
your first works. " Break up your fallow-ground, and 
sow not among thorns. Circumcise yourselves to the 
Lord, and take away the foreskin of your heart." 
'' Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy, 
.... for it is time to seek the Lord, till He come and 
reign righteousness upon you." Hosea, x. 12. "Judg- 
ment must begin at the house of God." 

How did the disciples on the Pentecostal day pro- 
duce a revival, when three thousand were converted to 
God under one sermon ? How was this glorious out- 
pouring brought about ? by what means ? Behold, in 
the upper chamber, one hundred and twenty in fervent 
supplication unitedly for the baptism of the Holy 
Spirit — Christ commanded them to tarry at Jerusalem 
till they received power from on high. "John truly 
baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the 
Holy Spirit not many days hence." ..." And ye 
shall be witnesses unto me, both in Jerusalem and in all 
Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of 
the earth." The fire from heaven came down and con- 
sumed the sacrifice on the consecrated altar. "And 
there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of 
fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all 
filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with 
other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance." 

Then, and not till then, were they prepared to glorify 
God in the salvation of signers. Then God accom- 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 245 

panied His word with the Spirit's power, and thousands 
convicted, cried out, " Men and brethren, what shall 
we do?" 

" And fear came upon every soul ; and many wonders 
and signs were done hj the apostles." And they went 
everywhere preaching the word. Every new-born soul 
was brought into immediate active requisition. Salva- 
tion streamed ! 

" Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there 
may be meat in mine house, and prove me now there- 
with, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the 
windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that 
there shall not be room to contain it." 3IaL iii. 10. 

Ministers and people thus consecrated will do more 
in one day in building up the broken walls of Zion, in 
diffusing light and glory, than in whole years of toil 
after the old treadmill fashion. " The kingdom of 
heaven suffereth violence, and the viclent take it by 
force." Converts converted under the full blaze of 
Gospel light, the meridian splendor of God's full, free, 
sanctifying influence, will be living converts indeed; 
not still-born, or untimely, but fuU-gTown, firm as a 
ROCK on fire. One such " will chase a thousand, and 
two put ten thousand to flight." 

" We may look for a Pentecost season to dawn, 
When the saints throngh the purifying process have gone ; 
When Jesus' loved image in them we can trace, 
Eecognizing the glory of full sovereign grace." 



24(5 THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



LOSING FIRE! LOST FIRE I 

Lost it ! Lost it ! Lost what ? His fire ! j^ es, his 
fire! Oh, ivliat a loss! rire,^r6/ holy fire! Where 
is it — oh, where ? Not in his prayers, his preaching, 
his writings, or his conversation. It is gone, gone ! 
Who doubts it ? Every one possessing the least spark 
of spuitnal discernment can see and feel the man is 
barren as the barren fig-tree, cold as a Greenland ice- 
berg ! Lost his fire ! No wonder ! A minister, deacon, 
class-leader, any one that succumbs to iniquity in the 
least for fear of losing caste, or of being put out of the 
synagogue, is sure to be shorn of his locks. It is awful 
to think of it, heart-rending ! Multitudes in the pulpit 
might be blazing firebrands of holiness had they but 
withstood the fires of persecution, imparted the light 
God gave them, stood firm by the Gospel tes*-. Many 
of these same backsliders, man-fearers, and time-servers, 
keep up the form of religion without its power. They 
have fire, sparks of their own kindling, but not Gospel 
fire. There is no Gospel in it ; nothing to kindle a holy, 
heavenly flame in the soul ; nothing to convert, purify, 
and sanctify. It is natural fire. Mount Vesuvius has 
fire, but who ever thinks of calling it pentecostal fire or 
the tongue of fire ? " Salt is good ; but if the salt have 
lost his savor, wherewith shall it be seasoned ? It is 
neither fit for the land, nor yet for the dunghill; 



THE FIRE TIIxVT BURNS. 247 

but men cast it out. He that hath ears to hear, let him 
hear." Luke, xiv. 34. 

Tell ? In a moment — in the twinkling of an eye, with 
. one eye shut, and the other only half 0]3en — at a mere 
glance — you can tell whether a man writes in the spirit, 
prays in the spirit, preaches in the spirit, with a single 
eye to God's glory, and his soul on fire ! It's clear as 
the noonday sun to every discerning mind. " The 
secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him, and He 
will show them His covenant." 

"Murder will out." The truth is, no one is duly 

prepared to honor God in public, in private, in social 

life, or anywhere, in a cold, formal, backshding state, 

in bondage to sin, a slave to pride or lust, or the fear 

of man, ''that bringeth a snare." The power is not 

there, the fire is not there, the flint nor the hammer. 

" Is not my word like a fire ?" saith the Lord, " and 

like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?" 

"What is the chaff to the wheat?" saith the Lord. 

Jer. xxiii. 29. 

" The duty that we owe, 
Yet hate or fear to meet, 
Will turn to gall our bitter woe 
The draught we deem most sweet. 

" The duty we perform, 

Though hard, if bravely done, 
Will pour a light through thickest storm, 
More blessed than the sun." 



" Proud and haughty scorner is his name, who deal- 
eth in proud wrath." Prov, xxi. 24 



248 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS 




GAZA, A CITY OF CANAAN. 



It is often referred to by tlie propliets. Jer. xxv. 20 ; 
Amos, i. 6, 7; ZepJi, ix. 5. It is memorable in the 
history of the Ethiopian eunuch. Acts, yiii. 26. 

" And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, say- 
ing, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that 
goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. 
And he arose and went : and, behold, a man of 
Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace, 
queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her 
treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to w^orship, 
was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias 
the prophet. Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go 
near, and join thyself to this chariot." 



*'A wise Idng scattereth the wricked, and bringeth 
the wheel over them." Prov, xx. 26. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 249 



A MINISTER SERVING TWO MASTERS. 

" How long halt ye heticeen two opinions f If tlie Lord he God^ follow 
him ; hut if Baal^ then follow him^ — 1 Kings ^ xviii. 21. 

Friend, we have watched you year after year, kept a 
watchful eye on your preaching, tract and periodical 
writing ; your advocating worldly amusements, your 
frothy chit-chat, your sins of omission and commission 
— hoping and prajdng that you would cease to do evil 
and learn to do well ; that you would no longer imitate 
those wicked Samaritans, mongrel tribes, " that feared 
the Lord and served their own. gods." (See 2 Kings, 
xvii. 33.) But, alas ! " hope deferred maketh the heart 
sick." " Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the 
leopard his spots ?" '' Though thou shouldest bray a 
fool in a mortar among wheat with a pestle, yet will 
not his foohshness depart from him." Prov, xxvii. 22. 

Our heart sickened within us, when we heard you de- 
clare, in a pubhc assembly, that you did not wish a cer- 
tain distinguished personage to give up his vile habit of 
cigar-smoking, at least so long as he was at the head 
of the army ! "Why not, with equal propriety, tell the 
General he might continue to swear a little longer, 
blaspheme God a little longer, and do other wicked 
things of which he is guilty, as to tell him to indulge in 
the use of the filthy, degrading habit of smoking and 
chewing tobacco? What is this in you, but court- 
ing the popular ear, seeking the applause of men? 

11^ 



250 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

Vain man ! proud man ! " How can ye believe, which 
receive honor one of another, and seek not the honor 
that cometh from God only ?" John, v. 44. " Seest 
thou a man wise in his own conceit? there is more 
hope of a fool than of him." 

Friend, do you ever think of the Lamentations of 
Jeremiah, and passages of Scripture like this, '' They 
that sow in tears shall reap in joy," w^hile commend- 
ing foolish games and worldly amusements to families, 
that kill time and murder the soul, or when cracking 
jokes at tin w^eddings, and at other places where Satan 
has his seat ?^* 

When you and your family are seated around the 
table spread with fox and geese, chess, or checkers, 
and other games of chance (stepping-stones to the 
gambling-table, which you enjoin parents to introduce) 
— whiling away precious, golden seasons, accompanied 
with lightness of speech and frivolity at your tongue's 
end — do you ever picture to yourself how Jesus would 
appear thus at the head of a table, and the twelve 
apostles around him ? 

Sir, we have been at a loss, frequently, in deciding 
whether you were doing more evil or more good in the 
world ; whether you were not doing more to further 



* Touching the disgraceful scenes at one of these " tin weddings," 
the half has not been told. Those familiar with the facts in the case, 
assure us that the whole proceedings were ridiculous in the extreme, 
shockingly disgusting, enough to cause angels to weep and Satan to 
blush. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 251 

the cause of Satan than that of the Lord. Latterly, 

however, our mind is settled on this point, our doubts 

are removed entirely, Alas ! alas ! for this serving the 

Lord a little, and the old serpent, the devil, a great 

deair^ 

" The Cliurch. and world amalgamate, 
A union worse than with the State." 

Man, in sacerdotal garb, are you not ashamed ? or 
are you lost to all shame ? " Know ye not that the 
friendship of the world is enmity with God ?" 

" Will ye play, then, will ye dally 
With your music and your wine ? 
Up ! it is Jehovah's rally ! 

God's own arm hath need of thine !" 

That the Church is rapidly conforming to the spirit 

and pleasures of the world, none can deny. The most 

alarming feature is, that prominent preachers lead the 

way, and the people blindly follow. What is this but 

spiritual adultery? All pleasure and all talk that is 

vain, empty, or unprofitable, or which does not tend to 

instruct or edify, is idle, and forbidden in the word of 

God. 

" He that negotiates between God and man 
As God's ambassador, the' grand concerns 
Of judgment and of mercy, should beware 
Of lightness in his speech." 

* " Ye are departed out of the way ; ye have caused many to 
stumble at the law ; ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith 
the Lord of hosts. Therefore have I also made you contemptible 
and base before all the people, according as ye have not kept my 
ways, but have been partial in the law." Mai, ii, 8, 9. 



252 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



A FALSE TEACHER, A WOLF IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING. 

" Many deceivers are entered into the icorld.^^ 

Hear him preacli ? What for ? Beware ! How can 
you, how dare you thus bid him God-speed ? "What ! 
hear a slave to lust of appetite and passion, the lust of 
the flesh, the lust of the eye and the pride of life, hold 
forth from the sacred desk, a slave to the vile, filthy, 
degrading " Indian weed ?" Awful! abominable! 

" Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and 
pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, w^hich war against 
the soul." 1 Pet, ii. 11. Again, sit under the sound 
of a foolish talker and jester, a writer of novels, 
romances, silly love-tales, an advocate of worldly 
amusements, of conforming to the world in dress and 
equipage ? '^ Te adulterers and adulteresses, know ye 
not that the friendship of the world is enmity with 
God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the 
world is the enemy of God." James, iv. 4. '^ If any 
man love the world, the love of the Father is not in 
him." 

Once more : listen to the voice of one from the holy 
of holies, who places he religion of " humps,''' the in- 
fidelity^ of Gall, Combe, Spurzheim, and Shak-paare, 
' next to the Bible ? Shocking ! blasphemous ! Run, 
flee, escape for your life ! Shake off the dust of your 
feet — run ! 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 253 

Slultitudes may now be fanning the flames of eternal 
damnation through the instrumentality of these Keen- 
tious, wicked wTiters. And here is a popular teacher 
in Israel, a man in sacerdotal garb, having the impu- 
dent, blasphemous assurance of placing next to the 
Bible these mischievous, infidel, corrupting, soul- 
damning authors before the public, in the pulpit and 
out of it, tinblushingly ! Shameful ! burningly, hell- 
deservingly ! 

" Some men's sins are open beforehand, going before 
to judgment ; and some men they follow after. Like- 
wise also the good works of some are manifest before- 
hand; and they that are otherwise cannot be hid." 
1 Tim, V. 24, 25. 

Cross your threshold to listen to such a man, pollute 
the Gospel of Jesus with lips and hands thus defiled — 
hands dripping with the blood of souls ? We say again, 
friends, heivare lest ye be partakers of his evil deeds, 
his awful blood-guiltiness ! 

Hear the Eternal speak, the Omnipotent : " If there 
come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive 
him not into your house, neither bid him God-speed • 
for he that biddeth him God-speed is partaker of his 
evil deeds." " If any man love not the Lord Jesus 
Christ, let him be Anathema Maranatha." '' There be 
some that trouble you, and would pervert the Gospel 
of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, 
preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we 
have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we 



254 THE SWOUD THAT CUTS : 

said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any 
other Gospel unto you than that ye have received, let 
him be accursed." Gal, i. 8, 9. " And he said, Take 
heed that ye be not deceived ; for many shall come in 
my name, saying, I am Christ ; and the time draweth 
near : go ye not therefore after them." Luke, xx. 8. 
"Woe to the pastors that destroy the sheep." Jer, 
xxiii. 1. Woe ! woe ! woe ! " For, behold, the day 
Cometh that shall burn as an oven, and ail the proud, 
yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble ; and the 
day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of 
hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch." 



" Te offer polluted bread upon mine altar ; and if ye 
offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye 
offer the lame and the sick, is it not evil ? Offer it now 
unto thy governor ; will he be pleased with thee, or 
accept thy person? saith the Lord of hosts." 3Ial, i. 7, 8. 

O ye priests, this commandment is for you. " If ye 
will not hear, and if ye will not lay it to heart, to give 
glory unto my name, saith the Lord of hosts, I will 
even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your 
blessings ; yea, I have cursed them already, because ye 
do not lay it to heart." MaL ii. 1, 2. 

" I hate the work of them that turn aside. He that 
worketh deceit shall not dwell in my house : he that 
telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight." Psalm ci. 6. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 255 



"HE HAS HIS ADMIREKS." 

No doubt of it ; so has Satan. The false prophets in 
the time of Jezebel had their admirers and followers, 
those who listened to their false teachings. 

No matter how wicked a teacher or professed minis- 
ter of the Gospel may be, how foolish, vain, selfish, sen- 
sual, money -loving, he will not lack for admirers and 
followers, those who embrace his pernicious errors, 
drink into his devilish spirit. 

He may sip the wine-cup, sit around the card-table, 
the checker-board, engage in games of chance, idle 
frothy chit-chat, attend the theatre, the circus, the ball- 
room, write novels, romances, sickly, sentimental, fool- 
ish love-stories, talk nonsense, all the same ! WiU not 
such a teacher be admired ? " They are of the world, 
therefore speak they of the world, and the world hear- 
eth them." 1 John^ iii. 5. " Many false prophets shall 
arise, and shall deceive many." '' Evil men and 
seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and 
being deceived." 2 Tim. iii. 13. "But there was a 
certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the 
same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of 
Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one : 
to whom they all gave heed, from the least to the 
greatest, saying. This man is the great power of God. 
And to him they had regird, because that of long time 
he had bewitched them with sorceries." Acts, viii. 9-11. 



256 THE SWOKD THAT CUTS : 

Look out, Mends ; we live in a wondrous age. " If 
tliere arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of 
dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a wonder, . . . thou 
shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet or 
dreamer of dreams ; for the Lor4 your God proveth 
you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with 
all your heart and with all your soul." Dent, xiii. 1-3. 

" There were false prophets among the people, even 
as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily 
shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the 
Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves 
swift destruction. And many shall follow their perni- 
cious ways ; by reason of whom the way of truth shall 
be evil spoken of." 2 Pet. ii. 1-3. 



WHAT DEVILS WILL NOT DO. 

Talk about virtue, purity of thought and life, de- 
claim against prostitution, illicit intercourse, meantime 
scatter the very dregs of moral pollution all through 
the land, entering-wedges to every species of vice, dis- 
sipation, and prostitution, causing Satan himself to 
blush ! " If Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against 
himself, how then shall his kingdom stand?" 3Iatt. 
xii. 26. 

'' "When the scorner is punished, the simple is made 
wise ; and when the wise is instructed, he receiveth 
knowledge." Prov, xxi. 11. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 



257 








GRACEFULNESS, IS IT ? JUDGE YE. 

That's it, parents. To be graceful, you send your 
children to the dancing-school. Is this Christ's teach- 
ing ? Paul's, Peter's, John's ? Is the dancing-school a 
school of grace ? Does it lead any of your little ones in 
the path of wtue, the narrow way of life eternal? Have 
any of your children been convicted of sin, converted 
to God, born into the Kingdom, in the dancing-school ? 
"When Solomon said, " Train up a child in the way he 
should go," did he suggest the cl^ncing-school as a 
means to this godly training ? "When the apostle said, 
" Bring up your children in the nurture and admonition 
of the Lord," was a dancing-school proposed ? 

Again, are dancing masters and mistresses examples 
of virtuous purity and humihty? Are these schools 
opened by reading God's w^ord, singing, and pra^'er? 
Is God's blessing asked. 



9" 



*' To chase the glowing hours with flying feet ? 

Are there any intimations in these schools touching 
faith, repentance, or a holy life — death, judgment, or 



258 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

eternity? Instead of being examples of gospel mod- 
esty and purity, are not these dancing masters and 
mistresses generally of low standing in society, not 
even welcome at the homes of their pupils as guests ? 
Are they not classed with theatricals, of loose habits, 
whose morals will not bear scrutiny, and whose lan- 
guage is often very contaminating and corrupting ? 

The freedom used between the sexes, in certain forms 
of dancing, is exceedingly immodest, and often results 
in the most serious and pernicious consequences ! 

Dancing is a most useless art — none more so. 

The evils flowing from dancing, and from inspiring 
children with a dancing mania, may be summed up in 
pride, folly, irreligion, an excessive love of pleasure, 
and, finally, in the loss of the soul ! 

Dancing, as now practised by the sexes as an amuse- 
ment, is unscriptural. Those men who perverted dan- 
cing from a sacred use to purposes of amusement, were 
deemed infamous ! 

Finally, we ask for what purpose is all this labor, not 
of love, but of legs ; all this outward adorning, not of 
good works, but of costly apparel ; all this display, not 
of a meek and quiet spirit, but of pride and tumultuous 
vanity ? Is it for the glory of God ? No. Is it to 
feed the hungry ? No. To clothe the naked ? to visit 
the widow and orphan in their affliction ? No. Is it 
to prepare us for the house of God, to teach self-denial, 
or lead to the foot of the cross ? There was no dan- 
cing there. Is it to prepare us for family worship ? It 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 259 

will be too late, and worship too dull and serious an 
exercise to break in upon the " voluptuous swell" of 
music, and stay the rapture of scenes where " all goes 
merry as the marriage-bell." 

*' On with the dance ! Let joy be unconfined ; 
No sleep till morn, when youth and pleasure meet, 
To chase the glowing hours with flying feet." 

Is it to prepare to meet the king of terrors ? to re- 
mind them that it is appointed unto all men once to 
die, and a.fter death the judgment ? Ah, no ! This is 
no place to meet thee. Death ; for — 

" Come, when the heart beats high and warm, 
With banquet-song, and dance, and wine — 
And thou art terrible !" 

No thought like these is in all their hearts ; God nor 
Christ, heaven nor hell, judgment nor death, ever enter 
there ; but, light of heart and vain of head as ever 
child in the butterfly-sport of spring, they frolic upon 
the brink of eternity, nor know that beneath every 
spring in the giddy dance it is fearfully crumbling. 
These are solemn thoughts ; and with them we should 
pause and consider. 

" For he that soweth to his flesh, shall of the flesh 
reap corruption." 

Christian mothers, are you aware how many precious 
souls are lost eternally by this stratagem of the devil ? 
God comtaands you to seek first the kingdom of God 
for your children ; instead of this, you place them on 
Satan's ground, in the broad road to ruin. 



260 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



LOVING FOLKS, HONEYING FOLKS. 

" Speak with earnest, holy daring ; 
Zion's children lieavenAvard go. 
Duties doing, crosses bearing. 

" I love everbody." 

You do, friend ? how much ? And w^hat kind of love 
is it? Bible? the love of the holy prophets and 
apostles — of Jesus Christ ? Is your love Gospel ? If 
not it is spurious, false, sickly, sentimental, or hypocri- 
tical. Does this love of yours lead you to obey God in 
rebuking sin of every kind, rise up against evil-doers, 
and stand up against the workers of iniquity — reprove, 
rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine ? 

Have you the love of Phineas, vvhen he executed 
judgment, and the plague was stayed? (See Num. 
XXV. 7, 8.) Have you the love of Nathan the prophet, 
when he said to King David, " Thou art the man ?^' 
Have you the love of Elijah, Ehsha, Isaiah, Jeremiah, 
Ezekiel, Daniel, who set their faces like a flint against 
every sin, cried aloud and spared not ? Have you 
Samuel's love, who hewed Agag to pieces, and re- 
proved King Saul to his face for his wickedness ? 

Have you the love of John the Baptist, who laid the 
axe at the root of all evil, rebuked Herod for his incest, 
at the risk of his head, and who said to self-righteous 
Sadducees and Pharisees, " O generation of vipers, 
who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come ?" 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 261 

J/a#. Y. 7, 8. Is 3^our love like Paul's love, who said to 
Elymas the sorcerer, '' O full of all subtlety and all 
mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all 
righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right 
ways of the Lord?" Acts, xiii. 10, 11. 

If you have not the love here specified, it is spurious, 
false, sickly, sentimental, hypocritical. Indeed, what 
you call love is hatred. " Thou shalt not hate thy 
brother in thy heart ; thou shalt in any wise rebuke 
him, and not suffer sin to rest upon him." Lev. xix. 17. 
"Be not deceived ; God is not mocked." 

Some parents profess to love their children very 
much, but how much do they love them ? enough to 
subdue their stubborn wills and restrain them from 
wickedness? What kind of love was Eli's toward 
Hophni and Phineas, sons of Belial ? Did he love them 
well enough to correct them betimes, teach them to 
obey God, have respect unto all His commandments ? 
What did God think of Eli's love in household dis- 
cipline ? Turn to 1 Sam. ii. 27. How readest thou ? 
What kind of love was David's toward his children, in 
letting them do as they pleased, serve Satan and their 
own lusts, pride, and ambition ? 

How many parents love their children in the same 
way ! Eli and Da^dd suffered their " little ones" to 
grow up in idleness, in all manner of sin and folly, to 
live as they listed, to be " lovers of pleasures more 
than lovers of God." Instead of love, God calls this 
hatred. " He that spareth the rod, hateth his son ; but 



262 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

he that loveth him, chasteneth him betimes." Prov. 
xiii. 24. 

Beloved reader, do you love enough to confess your 
faults, to go to those you have injured, and on your 
bended knees make hearty confession? If not, your 
love is spurious, false. We know a church-member 
who professes to " love everybody,'* even with a sancti- 
fied love ; and this same individual has been instru- 
mental in sundering the tenderest ties of kindred love 
and affection, marring the peace of families and the 
peace of Jerusalem, sufficient to cause angels to weep 
tears of blood. And yet he asserts his innocence, and 
refuses to make any reparation or confession of his guilt, 
or acknowledge the evil he has done and is now doing ; 
meanwhile, he continues his profession of perfect love. 
Could Satan himself desire a love better calculated to 
suit his infernal purposes ? " He that hateth his 
brother is in darkness, and knoweth not whither he 
goeth, because that darkness (sin) hath bhnded his 
eyes." 1 John, ii. 11. 

We know a flaming professor, professing to *4ove 
everybody," while at the same time the words of his 
mouth, the tone of his voice, the look of his eye, and 
every moving muscle of his face betrays him, gives the 
lie to his professions. We have meetings for prayer, 
praise, and testimony so full of this kind of love, that 
the individuals composing it have so much love they 
cannot find it in their loving hearts to rebuke popular 
sins, staring them full in the face. Is this the love 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 263 

God requires? or is it spurious, false, sickly, senti- 
mental ? 

To profess to *' love everybody" is popular and fash- 
ionable ; it requires very little, if any, self-denying or 
cross-bearing. One can profess love, perfect love, the 
love that " loves everybody," and the Lord with all his 
"heart, soul, and strength," and still love the world, be 
proud and covetous, follow worldly fashions, adorn the 
exterior with artificials, "gold, pearls, and costly 
array," read novels, romances, silly love-tales, talk non- 
sense, attend pleasure-parties, fancy fairs, sit down, eat, 
drink, make merry, and rise up to plaj^, sip the wdne- 
cup and brandy-bottle, chew and smoke tobacco, wink 
at popular sins in the pulpit and out of it, advocate the 
doctrine of expediency and compromise, carry religion 
in one hand, the world, sin, and Satan in the other. 

Friends, is this exaggeration ? "We speak that we 
do know, and testify that we have seen." 

" "Who is the honest man ? 
He that doth still and strongly good pursue ; 
To God, his neighbor, and himself most true ; 

"Whom neither force nor fawning can 
Unpin, or wrench from giving all thek due." 



Any minister or editor, who will be cramped in his 
public or private ministrations, by a conservative 
Church — who will not be free, outspoken against all 
sin, in the name of God, is unworthy a place in the 
pulpit or editorial chair. 



264 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



SICKLY, SICKLY, SICKLY! 

A FALSE CHARITY — A SICKLY CHARITY. 

" Sow truth, if thou the truth wouldst reap ; 
Who sows the false shall reap the vain : 
Erect and sound thy conscience keep ; 
From hollow words and deeds refrain." 

The world is full of it — in tlie Cliurcli and out of 
it. Why this looseness and slackness in family and 
Church discipline? Why are children wayw^ard, dis- 
obedient, headstrong, selfish, self-willed ? Why do 
they live as they list, say what they please, go where 
they please, do w^hat they please? Is not false ten- 
derness or a sickly charity the root, the branch, the 
fruit of all this — meanwhile repudiating the word and 
the life? Why is the pruning-knife almost wholly 
abandoned or laid aside in Church order and dis- 
cipline ? Why this neglecting to suspend or excom- 
municate disorderly members — rum-sellers, tobacco- 
mongers, covetous men* who are idolaters, theatre- 
goers, opera-dancers, card-players, novel-readers, Sab- 
bath-desecrators, church-gamblers, time-servers, "lovers 
of pleasures more than lovers of God ?" Is not a false 
or spurious charity at the bottom of all this — a disre- 
garding the word and the testimony ? " Oh," says the 
temporizer, " we must have charity ; for charity cover- 
eth a multitude of sins!" Alas] what sin does it not 
cover ? 

When and where has there ever been a true, faithful, 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 265 

outspoken Bible reformer, denouncing sin as God does, 
who has not been accused, sooner or later, of being 
uncharitable, of a harsh or bitter spirit? Even the 
wicked Ahab had the impudence to say to Elijah, " Art 
thou he that troubleth Israel?" Doubtless Elymas 
the sorcerer accused Paul of lacking charity, or of in- 
dulging m a very bad spirit, when Paul said to him, 
" O full of all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou en- 
emy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert 
the right ways of the Lord ?" Acts, xiii. 10. Deme- 
trius and his associate shrine-makers likely drew the 
same conclusion. 

The Scribes and Pharisees unquestionably accused 
the blessed Lord of uncharitableness, of having a bad 
spirit, when he said, " Woe to you. Scribes and Phar- 
isees, hypocrites ! for ye pay tithe of mint, anise, and 
cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of 
the law, judgment, mercy, and faith." Beloved, "has 
the offence of the cross ceased?" Let us "judge right- 
eous judgment." "Let the lying hps be put to silence, 
which speak grievous things proudly and contemptu- 
ously against the righteous." Ps. xxxi. 18. "The 
tongue deviseth mischief ; like a sharp razor, working 
deceitfully." Ps, lii. 2. The beloved Spurgeon, allud- 
ing to this same false or sickly charity, says : 

" A manly charity can comprehend severe language, 
can receive it from others without astonishment, and 
return it without animosity. Effeminate charity de- 
lights in honeyed words, smooth speeches, flowery 

12 



266 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

compliments, hollow courtesies, pretended friendships, 
and loud professions of union. 

'' Our churches need not fear a more terrible curse 
than this sickly charity ; it is to be execrated with all 
the vehemence with which we would denounce the 
bigotry it pretends to despise. Its tendency is to 
lower the value of £xed and definite doctrines, and thus 
to cast down the hedges of the Lord's vineyard,^ and 
give up her vines to the wild-boar of the wood. 

"Let this plague run through the camp, and our tents 
will soon be desolate ; no destroyer can be more 
mighty ; the darkest form of infidelity would not be 
half so deadly. Let us labor after a clear and scriptu- 
ral view of the truths of God's word ; learn humbly, 
depending upon the Holy Spirit ; judge deliberately, 
doing nothing rashly ; but let us see to it, that when 
once we know the mind of the Spirit, we holdfast that 
which is good, and are rooted, grounded, and settled 
in our faith. We need not be obstinate ; but w^e must 
be firm. 

" It will be well for us to prepare for warfare, for it 
will surely come ; and however we may wish for quiet, 
we shall not find it easy to maintain a peaceful con- 
science if we join in affinity with error. Love goes 
ever armed with zeal, and draws the dagger against 
all opposers of truth. That love which lets men perish 
in their follies, is but the semblance and mockery of 
love ; true charity will alarm a neighbor if his house be 
on fire." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 



267 




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268 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

THE PULPIT LOSING RESPECT AND POWER. 

" The Pulpit— 
And I name it filled with solemn awe — 
Must stand acknowledged, while the world shall stand, 
The most important and effectual guard, 
Support, and ornament of virtue's cause." 

Eespect ministers? How can you? Who will, if 
they respect not themselves, nor the cause of God? 
^' By their fruits ye shall know them." " It is required 
in stewards that a man be found faithful." Give the 
community a chance, a bare possibility of paying due 
respect to those ministering at the altar, and the thing- 
is accomplished. How beautiful the feet of " them 
that preach the Gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings 
of good things !" 

If ministers walk worthy their high vocation, honor 
God and His cause, reprove, rebuke, exhort, with aU 
long-suffering and doctrine — give themselves wholly to 
the work — they tvill be respected, honored, as God's 
servants, even as Moses and EUjah. 

But let them prove false, lower the standard of Gos- 
pel grace, make light of the higher law, connive at sin, 
sustain wicked, oppressive rulers — what now? Will 
such ministers be respected ? Does God respect them ? 
The gold becomes dim ! the fine gold is changed, the 
salt has lost its savor ! " Hear, O heavens, and give 
ear, O earth ; for the Lord hath spoken : I have 
nourished and brought up children, and they have re- 
belled against me." " Thy princes are rebellious, and 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 269 

companions of thieves ; every one loveth gifts, and fol- 
loweth after rewards. They judge not the fatherless, 
neither doth the cause of the widow come to them." 
Isa, i. 23. 

No minister or editor can long be highly esteemed for 
his work's sake, unless faithful to God, faithful to him- 
self and to the people — unless he stands firmly at his 
post, honors his high calling by declaring fearlessly 
" all the words of this lifer It is truly painful, alarm- 
ingly so, to see how rapidly the pulpit and editorial 
chair are falling into disrepute — Closing their hold on the 
consciences of sinners, by this bowing and scraping to 
the popular voice ! This falling off is notable in the 
mouths of saints and sinners ; and the pulpit and press 
will continue to sink lower and lower in disrepute, 
until a new leaf is turned over. God honors them that 
honor him ; and those that do not, are hghtly esteemed. 
Why were the teachers and holy prophets of old so 
highly esteemed — Moses, Joshua, Nathan, Elijah, 
Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel, before whom kings trembled ? 
Moreover, look at John the Baptist, Peter, Paul, 
James, and John — how greatly God honored them! 
The very heavens were made to shake at their ap- 
proach! "Why did kings and queens tremhle at the 
presence of John Knox? They feared the prayers of this 
bold and holy servant of God more than bullets or 
bayonets, the cannon's mouth or red-hot bombshells ! 
Beautiful, indeed, are the feet of the true and faithful 
servants of the Most High, "that preach the Gospel 



270 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

of peace and bring glad tidings of good things." Rom, 
X. 14. Wherever the Gospel is proclaimed in all its 
fulness and freeness, unadulterated, there God is 
honored, fear falls upon every soul, signs and wonders 
are done. But, alas ! how different where sound doc- 
trine is not endured, but " after their own lusts .the 
people heap to themselves teachers having itching 
ears !" To what a painful, shocking, awful state of 
degradation was the priest's office reduced by the 
Scribes and Pharisees, in consequence of their hypoc- 
risy and . time-serving ! Christ poured in upon them 
the liquid flame of rebuke — cut them up root and 
branch : " Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of 
you, saying. This people draweth nigh unto me with 
their mouth, and honoreth me with their lips, but their 
heart is far from me : but in vain do they worship me, 
teaching for doctrines the commandments of men." 
Matt, XV. 8. " Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat 
and swallow a camel." "Was there ever a truer or more 
graphic picture drawn, touching the present pulpit 
ministrations in very many churches ? 

Ministers that are doing no good, and who are feed- 
ing themselves and not the flock, deserve no respect 
from saint or sinner. It is high time for all such to 
betake themselves to some other profession. They are 
but leeches on the very vitals of the Church, sucking 
out its heart's blood. They are useless, and worse than 
useless ; and the sooner they are laid aside, and their 
places filled with those who will exert themselves foi 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 271 

Christ, the better. "Was there ever anything lil^e it — 
ever a period in the world's history when false teachers 
were more prevalent, more entirely given up to work 
wickedness with greediness ? The facts stated in these 
articles are facts in very deed, staring ns full in the 
face, and yet the half is not told ! Oh for an angel's 
tongue, an angel's voice, to ring and ring, thunder and 
thunder, louder and still louder in the ears of these dead 
corpses, spots in our feasts ! 

If our leaders are corrupt, blind leaders of the blind, 
what can we expect of the people ? Is it a marvel the 
whole world is tottering on the very brink of dark 
damnation ? 

In the closing of Christ's sermon on the mount, 

^' the people were astonished at His doctrine ; for He 

taught them as one having authority, and not as the 

Scribes." 

" 'Tis when the cross is preached, and only then, 
That from the pulpit a mysterious power 
Goes forth to renovate the moral man. 
He that without it wields 
The sacred sword, at best in mock display 
A useless weapon flourishes in its sheath ; 
None feel its edge — none fear it." 



" Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it 
cannot save ; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot 
hear : but your iniquities have separated between you 
and your God, and your sins have hid His face from 
you, that He will not hear." Isa. lix. 1. 



272 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

HAS THE OFFENCE OF THE CROSS CEASED? 

PERSECUTION — WHAT IS IT ? 

" Are there no foes for me to face ? 
Must I not stem the flood?" 

What is persecution? To be scourged in syna- 
gogues, brought before governors and kings for Christ's 
sake ? 

Is it to be stoned, sawn asunder, slain with the 
sw6rd, to wander about in sheepskins and goatskins, 
being destitute, afflicted, tormented ? Is it to be cast 
into the lions' den, or the fiery furnace heated seven 
times hotter than is wont ? This, doubtless, is perse- 
cution for righteousness' sake ; but is this all ? Is not 
opposition to God's truth in every form, persecution ? 
to vex, afflict, harass with injustice, false accusation ? 
to inflict pain from hatred or malignity ? What perse- 
cution more to be dreaded than a slanderous tongue, 
malice prepense — a tongue set on fire of hell — misrep- 
resentation, silent, Satanic innuendoes to destroy repu- 
tation and usefulness, hinder the cause of truth and 
salvation? Doubtless the vexatious hindrances of 
Paul among false prophets and false brethren, the time- 
servers and popularity-seekers of his age, their viru- 
lent opposition to his reformatory steps, were more 
aggravating and soul-trying than to suffer shipwreck, 
be stoned, beaten wdth rods, or to " receive forty stripes 
save one." 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 273 

We m.aj not, in this age of refinement, under our 
modified laws of civilization, be burned at the stake, 
led to the scaffold, cast into a lions' den, for preaching 
the Gospel in all its freeness and fulness ; but think 
you persecution has ceased, or the offence of the cross ? 
Is not human nature still human nature ? Is not 
Satan the very same Satan, going about like a roaring 
lion, seeking whom he may devour, or transforming 
himself into an angel of light ? Is there not the same 
hatred for truth and holiness now, as when Christ was 
put to death, John the Baptist beheaded, James slain 
with the sword, and Peter crucified with his head down- 
w^ards ? And who were the most virulent persecutors 
in the time of the holy prophets and apostles ? The 
Gentiles, the heathen — men of the world ? Nay ; but 
a corrupt, ungodly Church, a wicked Sanhedrim — those 
having a name to live, and were dead — having the 
form of godliness, but denying the powder thereof — 
w^hom Christ denounced as false prophets. Scribes, 
Pharisees, hypocrites, whited-sepulchres, appearing 
beautiful outward, but within were full of dead men's 
bones and all manner of uncleanness. "Fill ye up, 
then," says Christ, " the measure of your fathers : ye 
serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape 
the damnation of hell ?" (See Matt xxiii., the whole of 
it — a true and graphic picture of the present degen- 
eracy.) 

Has the offence of the cross ceased ? Let any ma.n 
of God stand boldly against the perpetual backslidings, 

12" 



274 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

the fashions and follies, the extravagant wickedness in 
costume, the idolatry in dress, in church-bnilding, and 
etiquette, the popery of the age, as Paul did — " What 
now? Mountains in labor, fire and sword?" " Great 
is Diana of the Ephesians" — something, perhaps, more 
piercing than steel, the drawn sword or bayonet. 
" The tongTie that deviseth mischiefs, like a sharp ra- 
zor, working deceitfully." " My soul," says the Psalm- 
ist, " is among lions ; and I lie even among them that 
are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are 
spears and arrows,, and their tongues a sharp sword." 
This little unruly member, whom no man can tame, 
more terrible to endure than a drawn dagger, is the 
chief instrument of persecution of a corrupt idolatrous 
Church of the present day. 

Let any man in the sacred desk or editorial chair 
come out boldly, unflinchingly against the manufacture, 
traffic, and use of strong drink and tobacco, two great 
engines of hell, that spread everywhere desolation and 
damnation, make our world an Aceldama, a field of 
blood— lay the axe at the root of these Upas-trees, cry 
aloud against the distiller, the buyer, seller, and con- 
sumer of this distilled damnation, and the corrupting, 
filthy, poisonous, body and soul destroying Indian 
weed — any rising up of Old Adam, any bubblings of 
the pit ? 

So, also, in regard to a corrupt press, issuing its 
millions daily, spreading firebrands, arrows, and death ! 

"We may not be called on to suffer martyrdom, as did 



THE FIRE THAT BUENS. 275 

many of tlie apostles and prophets, but our names will 
be cast out as evil. We sliall find the words of our 
Sa^dour true, that a " man's foes shall be they of his 
own household." The prophets, and apostles, and our 
Saviour opposed all sin, and they all suffered persecu- 
tion — many of them unto death. The same cause will 
produce the same effect ; if any one doubts this, let 
him try it. 

We perceive that those who tell us persecution has 
ceased, that the great battle for truth and righteous- 
ness is fought, and that henceforth the Church is to 
move on smoothly and prosperously, " on flowery beds 
of ease," are not the ones to stand at the cannon's 
mouth, place themselves in the battle's front, beard the 
lion in his den, wage open warfare with the combined 
powers of earth and hell. Satan is not very likely to 
trouble those that shim the cross, are at ease in Zion, 
oppose agitation, cry " peace, peace," when there is no 
peace, bow the knee to a time-serving age, loving the 
praise of men more than the praise of God.^ 

" Where is thy cross — the daily care, 
The daily toil, the daily strife — 
The warfare they are called to bear 
With foes who aim at more than life ?" 

" He that will live godly in Christ Jesus sJiaU (not 

^ The man that succumbs to iniquity, bows and scrapes to gain 
popular favor, caters to a corrupt public taste, stoops to this con- 
servative, wicked, doughface age, is not only in danger of losing 
God's smiles here, \mX forever. 



276 THE SWOED THAT CUTS : 

may) suffer persecution." ^' I came not to send peace 
on earth, but a sword." " What I tell you in darkness, 
that speak ye in light ; and what ye hear in the ear, 
that preach ye upon the house-tops." " And fear not 
them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the 
soul ; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both 
soul and body in hell." 

" Must I be carried to the skies 
On flowery beds of ease, 
While others fought to win the prize, 
And sailed through bloody seas ?'* 



WITTY PREACHERS. 



There is a class of preachers who come within the 
descriptive line of Cowper, of those " who court a grin 
where they should woo a soul," — aiming to say amus- 
ing and funny things to move the risibles of their 
auditors, seemingly forgetful that their vocation is 
something far more serious than this. A careful study 
of the ministerial epistles of Paul would fail to discover 
any directions on the value of securing attention by 
keeping an audience in jolly good-humor. Paul him- 
self was a model minister in matter and manner. We 
hear of his earnest exhortation and persuasion, of his 
consuming seK-sacrifice and zeal, of his weeping and 
tears while beseeching sinners ; but never of his effort 
to make his hearers laug-h. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 



277 






^J^ 

%^^^ 




RAMA, OR ARIMATHEA. 

Rama, or Arimatliea, was the native place of Joseph, 
a rich man, who went to Pilate and begged the body 
of Jesus, and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and 
laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in 
a rock. 3IaU, xxvii. 58. This was also the birthplace 
and residence of Samuel. 1 8am, i. 19. " And Samuel 
judged Israel all the days of his life. And he went 
from year to year in circuit to Bethel, and Gilgal, and 
Mizpeh, and judged Israel in all those places. And 
his return was to Eama, for there was his house ; and 
there he judged Israel, and there he built an altar unto 
the Lord." 1 Sam, yii. 15-17. 



" He that deviseth to do evil shall be called a mis- 
chievous person." Prov. xxiv. 8. 



278 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



WHEN TO STAY IN, WHEN TO STAY OUT. 

" When, for thy blessed Saviour's sake, 
Reproaches on thee rest, 
And of His sufferings thou partake — 
The will of Christ is best." 

Stay in ? Yes, stay in, if you can do your whole duty, 
clear your skirts of blood, open your lips wide for 
truth and salvation. Some remain in a corrupt Church 
organization and lose their grace, fall into the popular 
current, bow to a sickly charity. Very many for fear 
of giving offence, or of being turned out of the syna- 
gogue, put their light under a bushel. So it is, so it 
will be — '^ a Httle leaven leaveneth the whole lump." 
" How can two walk together except they be agreed ?" 
Can righteousness fellowship unrighteousness, or light 
commingle with darkness ? 

If we are in a sickly region, impure, contagious, and 
do not resort to immediate remedies to purify this 
malaria or pestilential atmosphere, are we not sure to 
sicken and, die with the multitude ? The only safety, 
morally speaking, is God. God now, God always, God 
forever ! God in the soul, and God manifested out of 
it. "I have not hid Thy righteousness in my heart," 
saith the servant of the Lord. " I have declared Thy 
faithfulness and Thy salvation." The light must shine, 
else it goes out in utter darkness. "And if the hght 
that is in us be darkness, how great that, darkness!" 
The salt must purify and preserve, else it loses its 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 279 

savor ; what tlien is it good for ? '' It is neither fit for 
the land, nor yet for the dunghill, but to be cast out, 
and to be trodden under foot of men !" 

Are there not multitudes in these popularity-seeking 
churches, " where the whole head is sick, and the 
whole heart faint," that feel and know they are in 
danger ; and unless they do their tuliole duty, " cry 
aloud and spare not," come out from among them, they 
are sure to be partakers of their sins and receive of 
their plagTies ? Friend, are you here in this contagious 
atmosphere, and still holding your peace ? — in a house 
on fire, the elements melting with fervent heat ? TiTiat 
now? die? Escape for your life! run! "look not be- 
hind you." Where is there a proud, popularity-seeking 
church, that receives glory one of another, and seeks 
not the glory that cometh from God only, that will 
listen to Gospel teachings, receive you graciously — 
while crying aloud, sparing not ? 

Has persecution ceased ? Try it, brother ; try it, sister ; 
storm the fort of Satan ; show the people their trans- 
gressions, and the house of Israel their sins ; describe 
the nakedness of the land, tell affectionately and melt- 
ingly, in the spmt of Jesus, that the lukewarm churches 
have lost then- power by shaking hands with the world 
and Satan — that their Sabbath desecrations are pro- 
verbial — that intemperance in eating and drinking is 
voluptuousness, bordering on gluttony and wine-bib- 
bing; that novels and romances — "the Harper's," "the 
Godeys'," " the Petersons'," the fashion-plates, and the 



280 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

comicals are the curse of the land, the work of Satan 
and his imps. Tell them, with tears in your eyes, that 
their houses of worship are popish, houses of mer- 
chandise, and frequently places of speculation, if not 
dens of thieves. 3Iatt. xxiii. 13. Tell them that 
secret oath-bound societies are the next door to per- 
dition, one of Satan's baits. Declare to them, meekly, 
that these " New Year's visitations," the custom of 
going from house to house on the first day of the new 
year, partaking of God's bounties to surfeiting and 
drunkenness, that raising money for benevolent pur- 
poses by fancy fairs, tea and strawberry parties, soirees, 
and oyster-suppers, are the stratagems of the devil. 
Tell them the adorning of their persons in gay and 
fashionable costume, in gold, pearls, and costly array, 
is a species of heathen idolatry ; that they are heaping 
to themselves teachers having itching ears — who wink 
at these abominations, heal slightly, daub with untem- 
pered mortar, cry "peace, peace" when there is no 
peace — What now? any sparks flying? any fires in the 
camp ? any rising up of old Adam ? any bubbling of 
the pit bottomless ? The spirit of persecution is not 
confined to the man of sin, the mother of harlots, to 
popes, cardinals, or Komish inquisitors. Churches 
called ' Protestant have drunk deeply at this bitter 
fountain. This wicked, persecuting, sectarian spirit is 
at our very door. Try it, friends, be faithful, do your 
whole dutj^, stand boldly for Jesus, fight manfully the 
good fight of faith in the midst of " a crooked and per- 



THE FIEE THAT BUKNS. 281 

verse nation, among whom ye shine as hghts in the 
world," and see if the half has been told. "What the 
reply of the Saviour to these fire-consumers ? " Ye know 
not what manner of spirit ye are of : the Son of Man is 
not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them." 
John^ ix. 54. " He that is not with me, is against me ; 
and he that gathereth not with me, scattereth abroad." 
Matt. xii. 30. " How long halt ye between two opin- 
ions ? If the Lord be God, follow him ; but if Baal, 
then follow him." 1 Kings, xviii. 21. 

" TiTitli is earnest, trutli is fearless, 
Ever dwelling in the light ; 
Still by Error's frowns undaunted, 
Striving only for the right. 

" Truth is strong and noble ever, 

And no power its course can stay ; 
No dark mists of persecution 
Long can veil its blessed ray." 



" Wisdom crieth without ; she uttereth her voice in 
the streets. 

" She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the 
openings of the gates : in the city she uttereth her 
words, saying : 

" How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity ; 
and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools 
hate knowledge ? 

" Turn you at my reproof : behold, I will pour out 
my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto 
you." 



282 THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



APPLES OF DISCORD. 

SQUEEZING IN — SQUEEZING OUT. 

" 8atan came also among tliemr — Joh^ i. 6. 

That's tlie way the devil does, whenever he can find 
access to families, societies, little folks or great folks. 
It is his every-day business to do mischief, mar the 
peace and quietness of everybody, produce discords, 
alienations, heart-burnings, backbitings. There never 
was a root of bitterness sprung up in a family, in a 
church, between husbands and wives, parents and chil- 
dren, brothers and sisters, church-members, neighbors, 
or communities, states or nations, but that Satan had 
something to do with it. '' This wisdom descendeth 
not from above ; but is earthly, sensual, devilish.'^ 
James, iii. 15. ^'If ye have bitter envyings in your 
hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth." 

Was there ever a noble or godlike enterprise com- 
menced without opposition from the enemy of all 
good ? No matter how good, how important, how holy 
the undertaking, how admirably adapted to make the 
world better and happier, diffuse light, life, and salva- 
tion, grace and glory — all the same with his Satanic 
majesty, he is sure to stir up one or more to interfere, 
to mar its beauty, throw in apples of discord, some 
clashing, fiery element. Indeed, the more of God 
there is in an enterprise for salvation, the more inde- 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 283 

fatigable the old serpent is to squeeze in his devilish 
influence, breathe the breath of calumny, blow the 
coal of strife, set on fire the fires of hell. This was 
true in Job's day ; when the sons of God came to pre- 
sent themselves before the Lord, " Satan came also 
among them." 

Let a few chosen servants of God, full of faith and 
the Holy Spirit, at the present day, write against the 
prevailing evils in the Church and out of it, sins pop- 
ular and unpopular, the spirit of caste and oppression, 
the making of God's house a house of merchandise, 
conforming to the world in personal adornments, the 
lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of 
life — cry aloud and spare not — how soon will Satan, in 
the person of his emissaries, the sons of Belial, rise 
up in opposition! And more still will formal, back- 
slidden professors, having a name to live, and are dead, 
throw obstacles in the way to clog the wheels of salva- 
tion, and put down the holy band of reformers. No 
stone is left unturned by those professing godliness, 
who yet deny the power thereof, to do the devil's work, 
place stumbling-blocks in the way of reform and salva- 
tion. And if Satan can find a Judas among the num- 
ber of these consecrated disciples of Jesus, a Simon 
Magus, a Hymeneus, an Alexander the coppersmith, 
a damsel possessing the spirit of divination, or some 
wolf in sheep's clothing, he is sure to make a tool of 
him or her. 

God for wise reasons, to try the faith and persever- 



284 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

ance of his faithful servants, permits the devil to suc- 
ceed for a time, to squeeze in and squeeze out, throw 
apples of discord, scatter firebrands, arrows, and death. 
The only way to drive Satan from the field, or pre- 
vent his squeezing in, causing roots of bitterness to 
spring up, by which many are defiled, is to double our 
energy, put on the whole armor of God, that we may 
be able to stand in the evil day, and having done all, 
to stand. JEpL i. 11-18. 

'' Stand firm. Oh, 'tis a high command, 

From which no Christian man should turn;* 

If Satan presses hand to hand, 
A holy fire within should burn. 

'Twill shield the champions of the Lord, 

Contending for His purest word." 



DEVILISH WORK, OR WORK OF THE DEVIL. 

How perseveringly devilish this same devil was, in 
his efforts to destroy the Church of God when Moses 
presided as priest, prophet, and ruler ! "What but the 
devil put it into the heads and hearts of Korah, 
Dathan, and Abiram to rebel against God and his 
faithful servants? (See Num. xvi.) The pious and 
lovely Miriam fell into the same snare, and became 
leprous — white as -snow. Num. xii. 10. After the re- 
turn of the Jews to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple, 
what induced Sanballat, the Horonite, and his associ- 
ates, to frustrate the completion of the house of God ? 



THE FIEE THAT BUENS. 



285 




MADKAS. 



Madras, the capital of tlie British Pogsessions, is in 
the south of India. It is occupied, for the propagation 
of the Gospel, by the London Missionary Society, the 
Church Missionary Society, the Wesleyan Missionary 
Society, the Church of Scotland, the American Board, 
and the Free Church of Scotland. " Praise the Lord." 

"And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying. All 
power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go 
ye, therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in 
the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the 
Holy Ghost ; teaching them to observe all things what- 
soever I have commanded you : and lo, I am with you 
always, even unto the end of the world. Amen." 
Matt xxviii. 20. 



" Salvation ! let the eclio fly 
The spacious earth around, 
While all the armies of the sky- 
Conspire to raise the sound." 



286 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

AN ACHAN IN THE CAMP. 

BURN HIM OUT, SCOKCH HIM OUT, FIRE HIM OUT. 

Out, out ! pray him out. Out with him, quick ! Live 
and breathe with an Achan in the camp ? You die the 
death ! ^' United we stand, divided we fall." If, at any 
time, or at any place, a cloven foot creeps into your 
family, your teacher's department, church organization, 
or missionary board, what then ? let him remain ? At 
your peril you do it. "Can two walk together except 
they be agreed ?" " Can a man take fire into his bosom 
and his clothes not be burned?" "A little leaven 
leaveneth the whole lump." One sinner destroyeth 
much good. Out with him, sift him out, pray him out. 
It is by prayer and faith, faith and prayer. There 
must be union, harmony, peace, salvation. No family, 
church, or institution can prosper without union. Why 
does MuUer, at the Orphan Asylum in Bristol, rise and 
shine, spread light on light, glory on glory? The 
teachers, one and all, are united with him, in spirit, 
soul, and body; prayer goes up unitedly, salvation 
comes down, stream on stream, fire on fire! Union is 
strength. "Every kingdom divided against itself is 
brought to desolation ; and every city or house divided 
against itself shall not stand." Here lies the secret of 
success in all societies of benevolence and mercy, for 
spreading light, life, and salvation. Keep out Deme- 
trius, the shrine-maker ; Alexander, the coppersmith ; 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 287 

Simon Magus, Ananias and Sapphira. Let the atmos- 
phere of heaven be so heavenly, so pure, so holy, so 
sanctifying, that no false professor,, time-server, hypo- 
crite, or wolf in sheep's clothing can live and breathe 
for a moment. Make it too hot for him. By all means, 
that's the way ; burn him out, scorch him out, " heap 
coals of fire on his head." Every family, every church of 
Christ, every institution for purposes of mercy, should 
have so much of God, the Holy Sphit in it, prayer and 
praise, that intruders of eveiy kind will be compelled 
to bow the knee to King Immanuel, or leave the pre- 
mises forthwith. Prayer with humble, confident faith 
in Jesus is marvellous, wonderful — wonderful ! It shakes 
heaven, moves the universe ! 

If Satan can find a Judas among the true disciples 
of Jesus, a Simon Magus, a Hymeneus, an Alexander 
the coppersmith, a damsel possessing the spirit of divi- 
nation, or some wolf in sheep's clothing, he is sure to 
make a tool of him or of her. 

God for wise reasons, to try the faith and persever- 
ance of His faithful servants, permits the devil to suc- 
ceed for a time, to squeeze in, throw apples of discord, 
scatter firebrands, arrows, and death. Who but Satan, 
in the persons of the mongrel Jews, hindered the build- 
ing of the second temple so long after the foundations 
were laid ? Ezra, iv. 23-25. The delay of the comple- 
tion of this house of God was doubtless owing chiefly 
to the lack of energy, self-denial, and perseverance on 
the part of the builders. '' Resist the devil, and he will 



288 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

flee from you." The only way to drive Satan from the 
field, or prevent his squeezing in, causing roots of bit- 
terness to spring up, by which many are defiled, is to 
double our energy, put on the whole armor of God, that 
we may be able to stand in the evil day, and having 
done all, to stand. Epli, i. 11-18. 

" Stand firm. Oh, 'tis a high command, 

From which no Christian man should turn ; 

If Satan presses hand to hand, 
A holy fire within should burn. 

'Twill shield the champions of the Lord, 

Contending for His purest word." 

''The weapons of our warfare are liot carnal, but 
mighty through God to the pulling down of strong- 
holds, casting down imaginations, and every high thing 
that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and 
bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience 
of Christ." 2 Cot. xvi. 4-8. 

Prayer, after all is said and done, is the chief in- 
strument of success — prayer and faith, faith and praj^ex; 
prayer, and watching unto prayer in the spirit. Pray 
out the evil ones, the disturbers of the peace ; carry 
everything by prayer. There is no surer or safer way. 

Prayer conquers worlds, subdues the universe, moves 
hearts of stones. Jacob found it true when he wrestled 
with the angel until break of day, saying " I will not 
let thee go." Prayer made the sun stand still. Joshua 
found it true to the letter. (See Josh. x. 12.) Prayer 
shut the rain from heaven three years and six months. 
Prayer again opened the windows of heaven, and 



THE FIRE THAT BUR^sS. 289 

sliowers descended and watered the parched earth. 
Elijah found this true to the letter. Prayer causes 
sleep to depart from kings. (See the case of Esther 
and Mordecai.) Prayer opens prison-doors, knocks off 
chains, sets the prisoner free. Peter found it so. 
Prayer is the lever that moves the universe. Prayer 
and faith, faith and prayer, subdues flinty hearts, casts 
out evil spirits. Causes devils to tremble, to flee 
apace. 

" Satan ti-embles when lie sees 
The weakest saint upon his knees." 

Still, there is a kind that goeth not out but hj fasting 
and prayer. Does the old serpent make his appear- 
ance in any way, shape, or manner, in the family-circle, 
Church of God, in meetings for social worship, squeeze 
in here, squeeze in there, in human form ? Pray him 
out, fast him out, cast him out. Let the atmosphere 
of hoHness be too hot for him. Go to God for help, for 
wisdom, for grace, grace on grace. Carry everything 
by the prayer of faith. Jesus cast out evil spirits by 
His word, and healed all that were sick. Oh for prayer, 
the prayer of faith that takes no denial. 

Friends, pray ; bring all the tithes into the store- 
house ; lay all upon the altar Christ Jesus. " Pray al- 
ways, with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, 
watching thereunto with all perseverance." 

" Prayer makes the darkened cloud withdraw ; 
Prayer dimbs the ladder Jacob saw, 
Gives exercise to faith and love, 
Brings eyery blessing from above," 

13 



290 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS 




*'N0 TIME TO PKAY?" 

Indeed ! What is time ? "Whose is it ? Wlio made 
time ? Is time yours, or God's ? Has God given you 
time to live, breathe, walk, talk, pray ? Why not pray, 
then — mind what God says ? God commands you to 
pray, pray always with all prayer and supphcation in 
the Spirit. 

" But I have so, much business/'"^ 

" Business" indeed ! Wliat business ? Yours, or 



* It is said of Martin Luther, that the more he had to do the more 
frequently and fervently he prayed. On one occasion he remarj?:ed 
to a friend, " I have so much to do to-day that I shall have to pray 
three hours.'' May not this custom of the great Reformer contain a 
valuable suggestion to us, who, in the midst of a continual pressure 
of duties, are in danger of being " overcharged," and forgetting to 
seek that relief and strength which alone can be obtained in prayer, 
in earnest supplication to Grod ? 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 291 

God's ? Have you any separate business from God's 
business? If so, you are a rebel — attempting to de- 
throne the Almighty and set up a separate kingdom ! 
Does God tell you to do your business first, or His ? 
" He that is not for me, is against me." 

Tour business should be God's business, and God's 
business yours — and your first and great business is to 
serve God with all the heart, soul, mind, strength — 
this through time and eternity. The more business 
you have, the more you need prayer, grace, wisdom, 
righteousness, salvation, sanctification. 

Some farmers, some mechanics, some merchants, run 
off, clasp the " muck-rake," neglect the closet, the fam- 
ily altar. 

Friends, will not God by-and-by take from you the 
stewardship, and give it to others more worthy, more 
faithful, more honorable ? " Will a man rob God ?" 

"In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall 
direct thy paths." " So shall thy barns be filled with 
plenty, and thy presses burst out with new wine." 



Robert Hall, hearing some worldly-minded persons 
object to family prayer as taking up too much time, 
said that what might seem a loss will be more than 
compensated by that spirit of order and regularity 
which the stated observances of this duty tends to pro- 
duce. It serves as an edge and border to preserve the 
loeh of life from unravelling. 



292 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



PRAY, PRAY; WATCH, WATCH. 

" Heed not the tempter's syren voice, 
A deep with dangers rife ; 
Mortal ! thou hast a better choice, 
Life, life, eternal life." 

Pray and watch, watch and pray. Pray all the time 
— watch all the time. Here he mistakes, here he fails. 
He prays a great deal, but he don't watch a great deal. 
Thus he stumbles, makes sad mistakes, and falls into 
the traps of Satan. The very moment he is oflf the 
watch-tower the enemy creeps in and takes advantage. 
Great stress is laid on watching — the command is all 
the way from Genesis to Revelation, " Watch,'' Nehe- 
miah says, " We made our prayer unto our God, and 
set a ivatcli against them day and night." Neli. iv. 9. 
" Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth ; keep the door 
of my lips." Psalm cxli. 3. " I will stand upon my 
watch, and set me upon my tower." Hah, ii. 1. "If 
the good man of the house had know^n in what watch 
the thief would come, he would have watched, and 
would not have suffered his house to be broken up." 
3Iatt, xxiv. 43. " Watch, therefore, for ye knoAV neither 
the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh. 
Lest coming suddenly He find you sleeping. Take ye 
heed, watch and pray ; for ye know not when the time 
is." 3IarJc, xiii. 33. "Watch ye, stand fast in the 
faith, quit you like men, be strong." 1 Cor, xvi. 13. 
" Watch thou in all things." " Watch and pray that ye 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 293 

enter not into temptation." " And what I say unto 
you, I say unto all, Watch." " The end of all things is 
at hand, be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer." 
1 Pet iv. 7. 

Reader, when does Satan get the advantage over us 
in the hour of temptation ? when do we yield to impa- 
tience, speak unadvisedly with our lips, say things and 
do things that grieve the Holy Spirit, which bring 
darkness and leanness into our souls ? Is it not when 
we omit to watch unto prayer ? 

** Oh, watch, and fight, and pray, 
The battle ne'er give o'er ; 
Renew it boldly every day. 
And help divine implore.'* 

We could fill page after page from the sacred oracles 
on watching. It is " Pray, pray ;" " Watch, watch." 
It is pray and watch, watch and pray. Prajdng and 
watching go hand in hand inseparably. We may pray 
and pray until we are weary, our throat is dried, and 
our eyes fail, and what will it avail unless we watch 
thereto ? It is letting down the watch that gives place 
to the wily serpent. 

"WTien did Eve stumble and make the sad mistake 
that caused angels to weep, and all earth to give signs 
of woe that all was lost? Was she watching, keeping 
her eye fixed on the prohibition, when she yielded to 
the tempter? Had she kept her eye steadily on the 
command, ^'Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye 
touch it, lest ye die," would she have plucked the for- 



294 THE SWOED THAT CUTS : 

bidden fruit, that brouglit death into the world and all 
our woe, " with loss of Eden ?" 

Had Moses been watching unto prayer, would he 
have spoken unadvisedly with his lips, as he did ? Was 
David looking up, with the eye of faith fixed on the 
" gTeat I Am," when he committed those awful sins — the 
sins of adultery and of murder ? David, long before this 
sad fall, had known the secret of watching unto prayer, 
or what amounts to the same thing, "living by the 
moment." Hark! hear him : "Mine eyes are ever to- 
ward the Lord ; for He shall pluck my feet out of the 
net." Psalm xxv. 15. 

Had Peter obeyed the Lord in the command, " Watch 
and pray, that ye enter not into temptation," would he 
have so wickedly denied his Master with oaths and 
blasphemies? Beloved reader, did you stumble, fall 
into sin of any kind, yield to the tempter — the adver- 
sary of God and man — while watching unto prayer, 
looking to Jesus, pleading the promises of God in 
faith? 

Whenever you are caught in Satan's traps, is it not 
invariably when off your guards forgetful of the high 
and holy mandate, "Watch?" Whenever you have 
given loose reins to appetite or passion, a flippant 
tongue, trifling conversation, " foolish talking or jest- 
ing" — manifested selfishness in any form — has it ever 
been when God was in all your thoughts, prayerfully 
and watchfully ? Why not then learn the all-important 
lesson of " hving by the moment," " praying always 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 295 

with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, watching 
thereunto with all perseverance ?" 

" If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the 

Spirit." 

" Oil, it is sweet to live hj faith, 
To cast our burdens on the Lord ; 
Calmly to trust what Jesus saith, 
And rest securely on His Word." 



CLOSET WOEK, THE WORK. 

Friendly reader, have you a closet ? do you visit it — 
make conscience of it ? When ? how often ? It's your 
life^ your spiritual life ! neglect it at your peril ! Neg- 
lect the closet, next the family altar, then the circle of 
social prayer, then the Bible, and then, perhaps, the 
sanctuary, and all the means of grace. Neglect the 
closet, and you know not where or how far you may 
wander ; you know not when, if ever, you will return. 
Neglect the closet, and soon you will abandon it, and be 
left of God to dark, if not damning sin — endless ruin. 

To pray in secret is a solemn duty — a glorious and 
blessed privilege, thus to hold converse with the Most 
High, as a child with a father, as friend with friend ; 
thus to commune with Him, breathe His Spirit, and 
receive His impress — His image upon your heart. 

" Nor prayer is made on earth alone — 
The Holy Spirit pleads ; 
And Jesus, on the eternal throne, 
For sinners intercedes." 



296 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 



THE LAZY CHRISTIAK 

" Those who heed his treacherous wooing 
Will his faithless guidance rue ; 
What we always put off doing, 
Clearly, we shall never do." 

A LAZY Christian ! Paradoxical, "Who ever heard 
such a thing ? A lazy Christian, dilatory in business, 
in family provisions and duties — one that goes dozing, 
dribbling, drawling, lounging, partly asleep and partly 
awake ; squanders precious, golden moments here and 
there ; slack in business, slack in payments, slack at 
home, slack abroad, slack in everything ! Such a per- 
son will do mischief in the Church and out of it — im- 
mense ! 

" As the door turneth upon its hinges, so doth the 
slothful upon his bed." 

" The slothful hideth his hand in his bosom ; it 
grieveth him to bring it again to his mouth." 

" The diligent shall bear rule." 

The only sure way of keeping a church in peaceful, 
harmonious order, growing in grace and in the know- 
ledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, is to keep 
every member at his post, on the alert, in some re- 
sponsible station, equipped for battle. No wonder so 
many churches are starving spiritually, or at logger- 
heads, biting and devouring each other. "An idle pate 
is the devil's workshop." 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 297 

" Satan finds some mischief still, 
For idle hands to do." 

" Why stand ye here all the day idle ?" Work for 
God, pull sinners out of the fire, fight the good fight 
of faith, lay hold on eternal life, and the peace of God, 
which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts 
and minds through Christ Jesus. 

" Be earnest. An immortal soul 

Should be a worker true : 
Employ thy talents for thy God, 

And ever keep in view 
The judgment scene, the last great day, 
When heaven and earth shall pass away." 

Everything in nature and grace are active, full of 
life and motion, on the wing. The sun, the moon, the 
sparkling heavens, the birds, the floods, the rippling 
brooks, and flowing founts ; the birds warble on every 
tree in ecstasy of joy ; the tiny flower, hidden from all 
eyes, sends forth its fragrance of full happiness ; the 
mountain-stream dashes along with a sparkle and mur- 
mur of pure delight. The object of their creation is 
accomplished, and their life gushes forth in harmonic 
work. O plant ! O stream ! worthy of admiration to 
the wretched idler ! 

" Dream not, but work ! Be bold ! be brave ! 
Let not a coward spirit crave 

Escape fi'om tasks allotted ! 
Thankful for toil and danger be ; 
Duty's high call will make thee flee 

The vicious, the besotted." 



298 



THE SWOPiD THAT CUTS 




SOLITUDE, SOLITUDE— SWEET SOLITUDE! 

What a blessed privilege is retirement — cessation 
from the busy bustling scenes of life, an opportunity to 
meditate on things lieavenh' and divine, things present, 
things eternal ! Sinner, backslider, stop and think be- 
fore 3^ou further go. Seek out some retired spot in the 
forest, under the shady oak or maple, like the man in 
the engraving. Take your Bible, open God's book, 
" search the Scripture s,'' pour out your soul in prayer. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 299 



"WORK WHILE THE DAY LASTS." 

work! work! work! 

* Whatsoever tliyJiandfindeth to do, do it icith thy mights— Eccles, ix. 10. 
" God gives the bird its food, but does not throw it into its nest^ 

" Let us tlien be up and doing, 
With a heart for any fate ; 
Still achieving, still pursuing, 
Learn to labor and to wait." 

" Are you in earnest? Seize this yer}^ minute. 
What you can do, or dream you can, begin it ; 
Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. 
Only engage, and then the mind grows heated ; 
Begin it, and the work shall be completed !" 

Work, go to Avork, work on, yvork forever ! 

Are you in trouble? Work! Are you tempted 
powerfully ? IVork — out in the harvest-field, white al- 
ready for harvesting. Work, work ! do good ! 

Nothing so surely and speedily drives aw^ay the 
tempter, dissipates a dull, stupid, or gloomy state of 
mind, as w^orking for Jesus — putting on the whole 
armor of God, and out in the battle-field. Think of 
Jesus ; never brood over your troubles, trials, and 
crosses — never give way to despondency, never. Mul- 
titudes of Christian professors are locked up in Doubt- 
ing Castle for want of work — activity in doing good — in 
imitation of the blessed Master. 



300 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

*' When Jesus came to bless mankind? 
Pure goodness was on earth revived : 
Come, learn of Him, and strive to live 
As our Redeemer lived." 

It is not simply by believing. Faith introduces ns 
into tlie way of salvation. But if we do not look 
ahead and go forward, we shall become like Lot's wife. 
We obtain salvation by faith alone. No one can keep 
it by faith alone. St. James says : '' For as the body 
without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is 
dead also." James^ ii. 20. 

It is by DOING. Eeligion consists much more in 
works than many seem to suppose. 

It is said that Demosthenes, when asked " what w^as 
the first essential qualification of the orator," replied, 
"Action!" and the second, '^ Action T' and the third, 
*^ Action!" So in the face of this antinomian age, we 
affirm that the first, and second, and third requisite of a 
Christian is Action. We fully indorse the sentiment 
of President Edwards, that " slothfulness in the cause 
of God is as damning as open rebellion." Settle down 
in inactivity, and you are undone forever. The servant 
that hid his Lord's talent was cast into outer darkness. 
Good resolutions are well enough as far as they go, but 
they do not make us Christians. They must have their 
embodiment in action. But cur activity must be of 
the right kind, flowing from faith that works by love, 
purifying the heart. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. oOl 



HOW TO CURE THE DUMPS. 

" Live for something ; be not idle, 
Look about thee for employ ; 
Sit not clown to useless dreaming, 
Labor is the sweetest joy." 

In the dumps are you? What else could you ex- 
pect — hope for? No marvel you are in Doubting 
Castle, so long as you take the easy-chair, sleep while 
angels wake, sing " Glory ! glory!" What is a soldier? 
what does he enlist for ? To slumber at his post — 
sleep on downy pillows ? Up, brother, sister, up —out I 
Put on the whole armor, burnish it with faith and the 
Holy Spirit, hope and love ; out into the battle-field, 
fight, fight ; and our word for it, you are out of dump- 
ings and doubtings. " Endure hardness as a good sol- 
dier." " The foxes have holes, and the birds of the 
air have nests, but the Son of man hath not where to 
lay His head." Did Job, think you, doubt or despond 
while searching out objects of charity and mercy, Vv^hen 
he delivered the poor that cried, and the fatherless, and 
him that had none to help him ? When the blessing 
of him that was ready to perish came upon him, and 
when he " caused the widow's heart to sing for joy?" 
Job was eyes to the blind, and feet to the lame, and the 
cause he "knew not he searched out." 

Did Paul, think you, suffer with doubts or despon- 
dency, while on the wings of love, pouring in the liquid 
flame of God's truth ? Here lies the gTeat secret of 



302 THE SWOED THAT CUTS : 

warding off Satan's fiery darts, of growing in grace, of 
holy living. 

Beloved, do you wish your light to break forth as the 
morning, your righteousness to go before you, and the 
glory of the Lord your rear-ward ? Would you have 
the Lord guide you continually, satisfy your soul in 
drouth, make fat your bones, cause you to be like a 
watered garden, and like a spring of water w^hose 
waters fail not — your peace to flow as a river ? Up, 
and out ; " put on the whole armor ;" " wash you, make 
you clean ;" '' lay aside every weight ;" " consider the 
poor;" " break every yoke ;" "visit the fatherless and 
widows in their affliction, and keep yourself unspotted 
from the world." 

" The poor ye have always with you ; and whenso- 
ever ye will, ye may do them good." In ministering to 
the poor ye minister to Jesus. " Whosoever shall give 
to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold 
water only, in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto 
you, he shall in no wise lose his reward." 3Iatt, x. 42. 
" God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labor 
of love which ye have showed toward His name, in that 
ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister." 
Heb, vi. 10. What saith Jesus to those on His right 
hand, in Matt. xv. 34 ? " Come, ye blessed of my Father, 
inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the founda- 
tion of the world :" wherefore? 

" I was hungry, and ye gave me meat ; I was thirsty, 
and ye gave me drink ; I was a stranger, and ye took 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 303 

me in ; I was naked, and ye clothed me ; I was sick, 
and ye visited me ; I was in prison, and ye came unto 
me." " Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the 
least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." 

" Be thine the joy that angels know, 
Who visit oft the abodes of pain, 
With interest list to tales of woe, 
And bid the dying live again." 



THE MAIST FOR THE TIDIES. 

THE READY — THE ALWAYS READY. 

Ready to every good word and work — to do what 
God would have him do. Call on him to pray? he 
prays — to speak? he speaks — to exhort? he exhorts — 
to give ? he gives. He is always at his post, to speak, 
pray, exhort, visit the sick, the poor, the distressed, the 
oppressed. His heart is open — his purse. He goes 
forward with alacrity, cheerfully, in every duty, public 
or private, however trying, painful, or self-denying — late 
or early, cold or hot, rain or shine, he is on the spot. 
" Lord, what wilt Thou have me do ?" is on his tongue 
evermore. In a word, he is God's, and God is his. 
Christ is in him — His love constrains him. He is trulv 
a minute-man. Whatever good thing his hand j&ndeth 
to do, he does with his might. He never shrinks from 
duty, when duty calls. He makes no excuses, no apolo- 
gies, for time, place, or circumstances. He opens his 
mouth mde, and God fills it. 



304 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS 






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THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 305 



GOLD PURIFIED; OR, WORKING IN THE FURNACE. 

** Trial, when it weighs severely, 
Stamps the Saviour's iniage clearly 

On the hearts of all his friends : 
In the frame his hands have moulded 
Is a future life unfolded. 

Through the suffering which he sends." 

Reader, is your faith tried ? Thank the Lord for it, 
" count it all joy." 

What true disciple, in all ages, that has not had his 
faith tried, again and again ? Faith that is not put 
into the crucible and tested is worthless ! The Lord 
put Daniel into the lions' den to try his faith ; Shad- 
rach, Mesheck, and Abednego into the fiery furnace, 
heated seven times hotter than was wont. 

Job declared unhesitatingly that he would trust God. 

The longer you keep a canary-bird in a darkened 
cage, the sweeter it will sing ; so, the more severe the 
disciphne of the good man's experience, the sweeter 
the songs of his spirit-life. The gold that is refined in 
hottest furnace comes out the brightest, and the char- 
acter moulded by intensest heat will exhibit the most 
wondrous excellences. God's children are like stars, 
that shine brightest in the darkest night ; like torches, 
that are better for beating ; Hke grapes, that come not 
to the proof till they come to the press ; like trees, 
that drive down their roots further and grasp the earth 
tighter by reason of the storm ; like vines, that gTow 



306 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

the better for bleeding ; like gold, that looks the bet-* 
ter for scouring ; like glow-worms, that shine best in 
the dark ; like juniper, that smells sweetest in the fire ; 
like the pomander, which becomes more fragrant for 
chafing ; like the palm-tree, which proves the better 
for pressing ; hke the chamomile, which spreads the 
more as you tread upon it. 

" There is a flower, when trampled on, 
Doth still more richly bloom, 
And even to its bitterest foe, 

Gives forth its sweet perfume. 
The rose that's crushed and shattered, 
Doth on the breeze bestow 
^ A fairer scent, that further goes. 

E'en for the cruel blow." 

What now ? Work in the furnace ? By all means. 
Work, work, work. Go right at it, keep at it — work 
with your might, all your might ; don't stop — go for- 
ward. Are obstacles in your pathway, mountain high ? 
Does Satan tempt you, shower his fiery darts ? Keep 
at work ; w^ork harder ; work mightier. The more 
fierce the onsets of the devil, the more determinedly 
w^ar against him. Break in upon his kingdom, on the 
right and on the left ; storm the fort ; give him no 
quarter. Never slacken your efforts or your zeal for 
God a single moment, because of Satan's fiery darts, 
trials, or temptations. " Think it not strange concern- 
ing the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some 
strange thing happened unto you ; but rejoice, inas- 
much as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings." Are 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 307 

you beset on every side, pressed down, crashingly, 
overwhelmed Avitli manifold temptations? Work the 
harder ; fight the harder ; buckle on the whole armor ; 
take hold on God ; plead the promises ; rest upon 
them — hold fast ; labor on ; fight on. Say as Job did, 
*' Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him." 

Some good folks, when greatly tempted, pressed down 
by manifold trials and discouragements, faint by the 
way, slacken their hand in the cause of truth and salva- 
tion, neglect duty, begin to doubt God's promises, his 
goodness. Thus Satan triumphs, gets the upperhand ; 
and Giant Despair locks up those doubters in his castle, 
and there they are, for weeks and months, gTinding, 
like Samson, in the prison-house. Awful state ! hor- 
rible ! 

" Tempted, tried, desponding one, 

Why does darkness shade thy brow ? 
Is there no all-bearing sun 
In the heavens above thee now ?'^ 

Trembling one, tempted one, beset by Apollyon in 
the way, remember this is the very time to press for- 
ward in duty, and hope more resolutely than ever. 
"When the furnace is heated seven times hotter than is 
wont, go forward, knowing that the same afflictions are 
accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. 
" God is faithful ; who will not suffer you to be tempted 
above that you are able ; but will, with the temptation, 
also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to 
bear it." Cor. x. 13. 



308 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

" Then, pleading, fainting spirit, turn 

To One who hears above. 
* Bear with the thorn,' the answer comes ; 
* I chasten whom I love !'" 

" Though now, for a season, if need be, ye are in 
heaviness, through manifold temptations. That the 
trial of your faith, being much more precious than of 
gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might 
be found unto praise, and honor, and glory at the ap- 
pearing of Jesus Christ." 1 Peter, i. 6, 7. 

Finally, " Count it all joy when ye fall into divers 
temptations ; knowing this, that the trying of your 
faith worketh patience : But let patience have her 
perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, want- 
ing nothing." James, i. 3, 4. 

" The path seems weary, and we ask, 
' Can this lead us to God ?' 
Why stop to doubt and murmur thus 
Beneath his chastening rod ? 

" Courage, ye weak and suffering ones. 
Day follows after night ; 
So shall the glorious scenes of heaven 
Burst on your raptured sight !" 



God is now speaking to us in thunder-tones, " Ee- 
pent, for the day of the Lord of hosts is upon every 
one that is proud and lifted up ; and he shall be 
brought low. Behold, the day cometh that shall 
burn as an oven ; and all the proud — yea, and all 
they that do wdckedly, shall be as stubble." 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 309 



HOUSEHOLD PREACHING— SAYING THE POOR. 

" They who strive to help the weary, 
Lighten sorrow's heavy load — 
They it is whom Christ has chosen, 
They, the hidden ones of God." 

That's it, friends, it's the household preaching that 
does the work ; going from house to house in the name 
of the Lord, with a heart full of love, on fire, for the sal- 
vation of the poor and perishing. " As ye go, preach ;" 
preach and pray, pray and preach. Go through — visit 
the people, give yourselves wholly to the work — go 
through lanes and alleys — the most obscure and dark 
places, up-stairs and down-stairs, in the cellars, search 
out the poor, the aiHicted, the degraded, the outcasts, 
administer to their wants, pour in the oil and wine of 
consolation, comfort the feeble-minded, support the 
weak, cause the widow's heart to sing for joy. 

" No matter where, if duty calls thee, go. 
Amid contagion, poverty, and death ; 
Do, suffer, die, at duty's call divine, 

Nor rest from battle till the victory's won ; 
Then, Soldier of the Cross, a crown is thine — 
Thou faithful servant, hear thy glad well done." 

By administering to the temporal necessities of the 
poor you gain their confidence, prepare the way for 
spiritual instruction. 

How did Christ, our great Exemplar ? The blessed 
Saviour never forgot the bodies of men. He always re- 



310 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

lieved their physical as well as their mental and spirit- 
ual wants. Is it so now ? What avail the most pointed 
warnings and admonitions ? Will the poor listen to 
spiritual instruction when destitute of the comforts of 
life, when famishing for bread and shivering with cold ? 
Will a starving man hear you expatiate on the sweets 
of rehgion, the importance of seeking first the kingdom 
of God ? Minister to his wants, speak kindly to him, 
feed him, take off his rags, clothe him, instantly his 
soul is filled with gratitude and praise. His confidence 
in your sincerity is gained. Then pour in the oil and 
wine of redeeming love. 

Thus the souls of the poor may be saved. Friends, 
will you do it ? Imitate Christ and his apostles — go 
about doing good ! Christ says : " The poor ye have 
with you always, and whensoever ye will ye may do 
them good." 

Multitudes in our large cities are perishing for lack 
of spiritual food — the bread of eternal life. Will you 
minister to them — open your heart and your purse ? 
" Blessed is he that considereth the poor." " He that 
hath pity on the poor lendeth to the Lord." '^ Deal thy 
bread to the hungry, bring the poor, that are cast out, 
to thy house. When thou seest the naked cover him, 
and hide not thyself from thine own flesh. Then shall 
thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health 
shall spring forth speedily. Then shalt thou call and 
the Lord will answer thee ; thou shalt cry, and He 
shall say. Here I am." Isa, Iviii. 6-12. 



THE FIRE THAT BUENS. 



311 




OLD SlilEON HOLDING JESUS IN HIS AKMS. 



U A -.^. 



And he came by the Spirit into the Temple : and 
when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for 
Him after the custom of the law, then took he Him up 
in his arms, and blessed God, and said. Lord, now 
lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, according to 
Thy word ; for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation." 
Luke, ii. 27-30. 

Simeon was endowed with the spnit of prophecy, and 
by immediate inspiration he was assured that he should 
not die till he had seen the Lord's Christ. Thus, under 
the guidance of the Holy Spirit, he came to the Temple 
at the very time when Joseph and Mary presented 
Jesus there, and so he witnessed the first accomplish- 
ment of a very remarkable prophecy concerning Him. 

Seeing, therefore, the infant Redeemer, and knowing 
who He was by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he 
took him in his arms and '' blessed God." 



312 THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



PREACHING TO CHILDREN. 

" Tis from the little ones, O God, 

Their simple hearts and artless ways, 
Wiser, because more pure than we, 
Thou hast perfected praise." 

Peeach to children? Certainly, even to little chil- 
dren — a word, a sentence, a chapter, a whole sermon. 

Parents, ministers, teachers, educate for this special 
purpose ; early enlist the infantile mind to things 
heavenly and eternal. 

Not a sermon from the sacred desk should omit 
special reference to the "lambs." "Feed my lambs" 
is the high and holy mandate. Christ fed them, folded 
them to His bosom. 

Teach children to expect these pulpit inculcations ; 
take them to the sanctuary for the express object of 
hearing, digesting, treasuring up the words of eternal 
life. 

This subject of early salvation is momentous ! Press 
it, press it on the minds and hearts of your "little 
ones," by night and by day, " When thou sittest in thy 
house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when 
thou liest down, and when thou risest up." Deut. vi. 7-8. 

Why are children inattentive — often wayward, un- 
governable, in the house of God ? Why do they mani- 
fest no interest or delight in the services of the sanctu- 
ary? Is it a marvel? How can it be otherwise? 
Very many ministers think no more of adapting their 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 313 

discourses to meet the juvenile age than they do of 
preacl-iing to the inhabitants of the moon ! 

What ! have children no souls ? When save the 
world? Never — till we preach to little children in 
God's house and out of it ; till parents awake! minis- 
ters aiuake ! 

Parents, take your children to the house of God with 
special reference to their souls' salvation ; praying, an- 
ticipating the truth's lodgment upon the heart and 
conscience. And when you return from the place of 
pubUc worship question them, solicit a repetition of the 
sanctuary services; bring them home to the heart, 
water them with prayer, as dew from heaven. Follow 
up this course from Sabbath to Sabbath, and soon we 
see children flocking to King Emmanuel, as doves to 
their windows, with countenances beaming heavenly de- 
light, with songs of hallelujah to the Lamb of God that 
taketh away the sins of the world. 

Here is an important moral field, inviting cultivation. 
Mind in its forming stage, impressible and inquiring ; 
not preoccupied. Gospel hardened, or blinded by the 
deceitfulness of sin. The attention can be more readily 
arrested by saving truths than in riper years, the affec- 
tions more readily won, the purposes of the heart more 
readily moulded to the right. Why then should this 
moral seed-time be so neglected by so many of the 
under shepherds, on whom the great Shepherd enjoins 
it so imperatively, " Feed my lambs ?" 

Why should parents be indifferent to this matter? 



314 THE SWOrtD THAT CUTS : 

Why should they take their children from Sabbath to 
Sabbath to the place of worship and Christian instruc- 
tion, and sit with apparent unconcern while their little 
Ones hear the Gospel in an unknoivn tongue ? or become 
so tired of listening to what they cannot understand, 
that they yield to the temptation to spend the time of 
worship in reading some book they have just drawn 
from the Sabbath-school library ; and thus form fixed 
habits of disrespect to the pastor, and inattention to the 
services of the sanctuary ? 

Many a good clerical brother who takes a little 
daughter on his knee ' at home, and delights her with 
some simple story, cannot be persuaded to carry the 
same style and the same power into his church, or even 
his lecture-room. And they vfho raise this complaint 
of incapacity are the very men who most need, for 
themselves and the people at large, the benefit of the 
work. It would infuse new life and freshness into the 
stiff propriety of their discourses. It would give flexi- 
bility and vivacity to their whole manner of address. 
It would increase the practice of illustration in sermon- 
izing. It would, indirectly, greatly aid the Sabbath- 
school, more deeply interest parents in the spiritual 
welfare of their children, and suggest to them interest- 
ing modes of conveying truth. Any pastor w^ho will, by 
collecting facts and anecdotes from the newspapers and 
from his general reading, gather materials for this 
labor, will be surprised to find how little labor will en- 
able him to interest an audience of children. It is the 



THE FIRE THAT BUENS. 315 

testimony of every pastor engaged in this work, that 
the most intelligent adults in his congregation are none 
the less interested in these simple and fully illustrated 
addresses than the children. It is noteworthy that our 
Lord, when discoursing to the Scribes and learned doc- 
tors of the law, made hardly less use of parables than 
when instructing the common people. "A good illus- 
tration is an argument ;" and it is also Sb power to force 
the truth irresistibly home. 

If any pastor would multiply the strong ties between 
himseK and his people, if he would extend his influence 
over them, if he would win the gratitude of every 
parent in his charge, and, above all, fulfil the Master's 
solemn injunction, "Feed my lambs," we would urge 
him to enter at once and in earnest on this most de- 
lightful and rewarding work. 

It is a precious gift to be able to interest and profit 
a congregation of children. Let those to whom God 
has given it by no means despise it, but carefully culti- 
vate it by prayer, reading, study, and observation. 

" Call the children early, parent, 
Give the little lambs thy care ; 
See that they are folded safe 
"Within the heart of prayer." 

" Children are the heritage of the Lord." It is the 
Father's good pleasure to give them the kingdom. 
They are therefore to be "brought to Christ" — to be 
trained for God — to be " brought up in the nurture and 
admonition of the Lord." 



316 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



<i?^?S^^g^^^Sg^^?s 




FEED THE LAMBS. 



Nourish tliem, carry them in the bosom — feed them 
with the sincere milk of the Word. Gins, traps, snares, 
and pitfalls are on every side. False prophets, false 
teachers, errorists, socialists, nniversalists, mesmerism, 
spiritualism, magicians, necromancers, witches, and 
wizards, the gay party, the ball-room, the fashionable 
concert, the formal professor, the time-serving. 

The young convert must be exhorted, entreated to 
shun these temptations,, these traps of Satan — touch 
not, taste not, handle not these unclean things ; have no 
fellowship with the unfi^uitful works of darkness ; to 
flee youthful lusts, that war against the soul ; to read 
God's word, meditate in it day and night, hide it in the 
heart, drink into its spirit ; pray much in secret, pray 
always with all prayer and supplication in the spirit, 
watching in the same with all perseverance ; to be 



THE FIEE THAT BUKNS. 317 

steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of 
the Lord. 

The only sure way for young Christians to live and 
thrive is to do good and communicate, be active in the 
cause of benevolence, labor for God, for souls, imitate 
Christ and his apostles. New converts need line upon 
line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a 
little. Pubhc sermons and sanctuary duties, however 
scriptural and powerful, will not suffice ; fireside, social, 
conversational, every-day instruction is called for. Nor 
should the minister or pastor alone do all the work ; 
the experienced Christian, the fathers and mothers in 
Israel have a weighty responsibility — yes, every church- 
member should be a " living epistle, known and read 
of all men." Lambs cannot feed on chaff or husks, but 
angels' food — the bread of heaven, the sincere milk of 
the word — that they may grow thereby. 

Says a popular preacher in Brooklyn, " People will 
go where they are fed, and will not go where they are 
not fed." 

True indeed ; but what is the food alluded to by this 
distinguished divine ? Gospel food, that nourishes the 
soul? What does he preach? The doctrines of the 
Bible, " holiness to the Lord," entire consecratedness 
to God's service ? Does he tell his audience to " come 
out from the vv^orld and be separate, and touch not the 
unclean thing" — abstain from all appearance of evil? 
Not so. People judge differently as to what is worth 
hearing, as preachers differ as to v/hat is worth saying. 



318 THE SWOED THAT CUTS : 

Yery many are deliglited with nonsense, trifling witti- 
cisms in the pulpit, foolish talking and jesting, and 
"heap to themselves teachers having itching ears," 
w^ho would find no pleasure in hearing the sermon on 
the mount. This popular preacher, boasting of the 
multitudes that flock to hear him, should bear in mind 
that there are many kinds of '' fodder, and a corres- 
pondingly great variety in the feeders of the fodder." 
The crow, that would turn up his nose at the manna 
that fell in the wilderness, would riot in the carrion 
that made the dove fly away in disgust. The common 
supj)osition, that a man " feeds" multitudes because 
they go to hear him, or that another man has nothing 
"worth hearing" because his audiences are not so 
large, is the sheerest nonsense. 

" The elders which are among you I exhort, who am 
also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, 
and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed : 
Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the 
oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly ; not 
for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind : Neither as being 
lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the 
flock. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye 
shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away." 
1 Peter, v. 1-4. 

Beware ! " For such are false apostles, deceitful 
workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of 
Christ. And no marvel ; for Satan himself is trans- 
formed into an angel of light." 2 Cor. xi. 13, 14. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 319 



DAUBING FOLKS —FOLKS THAT DAUB. 

" Her propliets have daubed them with mortavr — Ezel<,. xxU. 28. 

" Because, even because, they liave seduced my peo- 
ple, saying, Peace : and there was no peace ; and one 
built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untem- 
pered mortar : Say unto them which daub it with un- 
tempered mortar, that it shaU fall : there shall be 
an overflowing shower ; and ye, O great hailstones, 
shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it." — Ezek, 
xiii. 10, 11. 

There were daubers in Ezekiel's time, and there are 
daubers now ; daubing here, daubing there. It's daub- 
ing in the pulpit, it's daubing in the press. It's daub- 
ing with the great folks, it's daubing with the little 
folks ; it's daub, daub, daub ! Ministers and editors 
that daub in one place, are sure to daub in other places. 
The man that writes daubingly, is sure to preach daub- 
ingiy — the man that preaches daubingly, is sure to 
write daubingly. The man, in the pulpit, that preaches 
daubingly to the great folks, men and women, preaches 
daubingly also to the "Uttle folks.'' So it goes — all 
through the land — till all classes, old and young, male 
and female, rich and poor, bond and free, white and 
black, are daubed by these daubers, in the pulpit and 
out of it. Oh ! oh ! what an awful state of things ! 
" The whole head is sick and the whole heart faint." 



320 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

When will the people open their eyes to this daubing, 
and be no more daubed by these ministerial and edi- 
torial daubers ? What can you do to get them out of 
this daubing? "They are mser in their own conceits 
than seven men that can render a reason." No cases 
on Bible record, and in all gospel lands, are so difficult 
to manage as these daubers, and those that have been 
daubed by these same daubers in the pulpit and in the 
editorial chair. 

Oh ! what a Herculean task for the true Bible re- 
former — following in the train of these daubers. The 
whole field before him is like a scorched prairie, run 
over with fire, and no sign of gTeen foliage of fruits or 
flowers ! Far more hopeful for the dwellers in heathen 
lands, sitting in the region and shadow of death, 
whose ears have never been greeted with the sweet 
sound of Jesus. 

" Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard 
his spots ? then may ye also do good, that are accus- 
tomed to do evil." Jer, xiii. 23. 

Christ found this same difficulty in His day, and with 
what terrific, scorching fires of rebuke He denounced 
these daubers — those who paid tithes of mint, anise, 
and cummin, and omitting the weightier matters of the 
law — judgment, mercy, and faith ; who compassed sea 
and land to make one proselyte ; and when made was 
twofold more the child of hell than themselves ! " Ye 
serpents, ye generation of vipers — how can ye escape 
the damnation of hell?" ilia?^^. xxiii. 33. "Lo, when 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 6Z 

the wall is fallen, shall it not be said unto you, Where 
is the daubing wherewith ye have daubed it ? 

" Therefore thus saith the Lprd God, I will rend it 
with a stormy wind in my fury, and there shall be an 
oyerflowing shower in mine anger, and great hailstones 
in my fury to consume it. 

" So will I break down the wall that ye have daubed 
with untempered mortar, and bring it down to tha 
ground, so the foundation thereof shall be discovered, 
and it shall fall, and ye shall be consumed in the midst 
thereof : and ye shall know that I am the Lord. Thus 
will I accomplish my wrath upon the wall, and upon 
them that daubed it with untempered mortar, and will 
say unto you. The wall is no more, neither they that 
daubed it." Ezeh xiii. 12-15. 

How much better to obey God than man. " To obey 
is better than sacrifice, and to hearken, than the fat of 
rams. For rebelHon is as the sin of witchcraft, and 
stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry." 1 Samuel, 
XV. 22. 

Lord, have mercy on these blind guides. " For if 
the blind lead the blind, both will fall into the ditch." 



" Fret not thyself because of evil men, neither be 
thou envious at the wicked. For there shall be no re- 
ward to the evil man ; the candle of the wicked shall 
be put out." Prov. xxiv. 19, 20. 



322 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



THE WORKS OF THE FLESH ARE MANIFEST. 

HINTS TO MINISTERS AND TEACHERS. 

*' Far off, the road which leads to death 
Looks beautiful and fair ; 
Lord, seek Thy servants if they stray, 
Nor let us perish there." 

Is it not strange that very many professed minis- 
ters of the Gospel open their lips on every command in 
the decalogue save one, the seventh ? denounce every 
sin save that of adultery, the sin of lewdness, the over- 
shadowing sin of the land, the " Upas" of the day ? A 
sin so prevalent, so enormous, so polluting, so con- 
science-searing ? A sin that is paralyzing the influence 
of the Gospel everyivhere, engulfing its millions annually 
in the pit of woe everlasting ? Silence gives consent, 
and the iniquity abounds increasingly. " The land is 
full of adulterers." ^'Even as Sodom and Gomorrah 
and the cities about them, in like manner giving them- 
selves over to fornication and going after strange 
flesh." 

Beloved, how canjou, how daj^e you hold your peace 
while this evil stares you full in the face ? Think not 
you are safe while thus silent. You are exposed, your 
families, your kindred, your dearest friends. Our land 
is polluted ; our churches are contaminated. There is 
no safety but in God, in crying aloud, lifting up the 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 323 

voice like a trumpet. " Thou slialt in any wise rebuke 
thy neighbor, and not suffer sin upon him." 

" Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are 
these : adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness." 
The law is not for the righteous, but " for whoremong- 
ers, for them Avho defile themselves with mankind, for 
men-stealers." 1 Tim, i. 10. "For this ye know, that 
no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous 
man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the 
kingdom of Christ and of God." Epli. v. 5. " Mar- 
riage is honorable in all, but whoremongers and adul- 
terers God will judge." 

" Watchman on the walls of Zion, 
Watch the movements of that lion 
Who is seeking to devour." 

Lewdness is the whirlpool, the everlasting sin, the 
leprosy of the day ; " the way to hell, going down to 
the chambers of death." Millions of our race sink uito 
-the abvss, and rise no more forever ! 

"^Vhere lies the stagnant lake whose poisonous exhala- 
tions fill the surrounding atmosphere with a more dead- 
ly contagion, or bear to a wider extent all the ingre- 
dients of moral pestilence and contamination ? 

Or where is the volcano whose useless fires pour 
forth such a torrent of boiling lava as to lay waste in 
its course everything fair and good, and leave behind 
naught but one vast scene of moral desolation? If 
there be such a crying sin in our land, whose power, 
like the wing of the sirocco, is sweeping before it peace 



324 THE SWOBD THAT CUTS : 

and happiness, filling our penitentiaries, hospitals, alms- 
houses, jails, and State prisons with its deluded vota- 
ries, sending annually to the tomb and to perdition, from 
the ranks of our youthful population, thousands of its 
ruined victims ; to break the hearts of parents, brothers 
and sisters, and spread far and wide weeping, lamenta- 
tion, and woe, why the continued silence of so many 
ministers of the 'Gospel, in their pulpits, upon the 
subject ? 

Are not all the commands of the decalogue of equal 
authority and obligation?"^ Is the violation^ of one, 
trampling upon less authority, or sundering a less obli- 
gation, or committing a less sin, than the violation of 
another ? Are not the sins of the seventh command- 
ment as heinous in the sight of God, and by Him as 
strictly forbidden, as the first, the fourth, or the tenth ? 
Who can say they are not ? And yet in relation to no 
other prevaihng sin do the ministers of religion observe 
equal silence, indifference, and insensibility. 

The tinith is, no considerable reformation in morals 
or religion has ever been effected without the power of 
the pulpit and the general co-operation of its ministers. 
Without the aid of the pulpit and its ministers, Chris- 
tianity had never been established, and men turned 
from the cruelties, the impurity, and wickedness of 



* Licentiousness and slavery go hand in hand. Wherever you see 
oppression — the chattel system — there you see a harem, the hotbed 
of moa'al pollution ! 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 325 

pagan idolatry, to the belief and practice of Gospel 
truth.. 

Had Paul, and Peter, and the other apostles been 
diimh, who had put to silence heathen oracles, over- 
turned heathen temples, and altars, and worship conse- 
crated to devils — planted Christianity in the heart of 
the Koman empire, and unfolded the standard of the 
Cross over the palace of the Caesars ? 

Had Wickliff, Luther, Calvin, Wesley, and their as- 
sociates kept silence, what power on earth, unaided by 
such spirits, could have accompUshed the work of the 
Beformaiion ? 

Motives to the faithful discharge of duty are strong 
and powerful. From time and eternity they cluster 
around the ministers of God, and press them without 
longer delay to speak out decidedly and earnestly on 
the subject of moral reformation — the great sin of 
lewdness. 

They are called to this duty by every consideration 
that can rouse to action the slumbering spirit-^the 
peace of famiUes, the welfare of society, the blessings 
of liberty, the cause of niorality and religion, the inter- 
ests of time, and the still more momentous concerns of 
eternity — the orphan's tears and widow's groans, life, 
death, judgment, heaven, hell — all, a??, call upon them, 
with united voices, to wake to the suppression of crimes 
that know no limit, and miseries that have no end. 



32G 



THE S^ ORD THAT CUTS : 




BSLSHAZZAR S FEAST. 



MOCKIKG FOLKS— FOLKS THAT MOCK. 



The feast of the impious Belshazzar, during which 
he saw the fingers of a man's hand writing upon the 
plaster of the wall, and his knees smote one against 
the other. Dan, v. 1-6. 

Was this wicked, idolatrous Belshazzar the only 
mocker, think you, reader? We tell you, nay. The 
world is full of them. Ministers mock God on a 
thoughtless tongue ; parents mock God ; little children 
mock God. 

Look at those children that mocked Elijah, saying, 
" Go up, thou baldhead." And what became of them ? 
God sent " two she-bears out of the wood, and tare 
forty and two of them." 2 Kings, ii. 23. 

Ministers mock God when they confer with flesh and 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 327 

blood, keep back part of the price, bow to the popular 
ear. Parents mock God when they sohcit prayers for 
their unconverted children, meanwhile permitting these 
ungodly sons and daughters of theirs to continue in the 
service of Satan, live as they " list." What is it but 
mockery, or playing the hypocrite, to solicit the prayers 
of God's people while clinging to any idol, any known 
sin, while we have no fixed purpose of coming out from 
the world, and " presenting our bodies, a living sacri- 
fice, holy, acceptable to God, which is our reasonable 
service ?" Beware, friends, lest your " bands be made 
strong." David says, " If I regard iniquity in my 
heart, God will not hear me." Again he says, " I will 
wash my hands in innocency, so will I compass thine 
altar, O Lord, that I may publish with the voice of 
thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wonderful works." 
Psalm xxvi. 6. 

How many useless prayers! How much prayer, 
called prayer, that is not prayer ! 

" The lips may utter holy words, 

And tremble with the form of prayer ; 
May charm the ear like singing birds, 
And seem an angel's praise to share. 

" And yet, unless a life of love, 

Which fain would bless the world, be ours, 
In vain we lift our hearts above. 

Though worshipping in Eden bowers ! 

" Our life, our love, give soul to prayer. 
Faith wings it to the mercy-seat, 
Wins it divine acceptance there, 
And pours heaven's treasures at our feet." 



328 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



A SAD MISTAKE, ONE OF THE SADDEST. 

" When the false pastor from his fainting flock 
Withholds the bread of life, the Gospel news. 
To give them dainty words, lest he should shock 

The fragile fabric of the paying pews. 
Who but must feel the man, to grace unknown, 
Has kissed — not Calvary — but the Blarney-stone." 

This mistake in the pastorship is not only one of the 
saddest of the sad, but a prevalent one — the omission 
of the shepherds of the flock to see and know what is 
read in families — on what kind of moral, mental, and 
spiritual food parents and children are feasting ; 
whether good or bad, wholesome or unwholesome, 
poisonous or otherwise. Books and papers do preach, 
are preaching, will continue to preach, either salvation 
or damnation. Our whole nation is being moulded this 
very day. And rest assured, God holds His ministers 
responsible for the consequences of this " light bread" 
— these literary serpents ! — to the utmost of their office 
and ability, to discern between the precious and the 
vile, and sound the trumpet of alarm accordingly. "A 
wholesome literature is the safety of a country. One 
of the uses of good books and periodicals is to keep 
away bad ones. People will have something to read ; 
and ministers and elders are not worthy of the name 
of pastors — feeders of the flock — who will not furnish 
their charge with the food contained in good books and 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. ' 329 

good papers. Bad books and irreligious papers are 
even worse than bad company. They more deeply 
poison the soul, and our only way of keeping such out 
of families is to supply the house with good ones. Our 
own judgment is, that the habit of novel-reading is 
utterly destructive of intellectual discipline, and en- 
feebling to the last degree." 

" Watclimen on the walls of Zion, 
Do not leave your charge an hour." 

Beloved, do you make it a special, all-important busi- 
ness to place in every household a good book, a weekly 
or monthly, breathing a pure Gospel — the atmosphere 
of heaven, that takes a bold, independent stand against 
all iniquity unsparingly ? 

Ministers of Jesus, are you using all laudable efforts 
to circulate books, tracts, and periodicals of the right 
kind ? Are you laboring incessantly to get every family 
to take some valuable religious paper of a purifying, 
sanctifying influence, one that will tell on the con- 
science of every soul — bring home the truth — " Thou art 
the man?'' Such a paper will be an auxiliary, a mutual 
helper, a second John the Baptist, assist you much in 
your pulpit ministrations, in the cause of reform and 
salvation. It will preach when and where you cannot 
preach — in the closet, the study, the ofiice, the work- 
shop, the domestic circle, everywhere ; its silent voice 
will be heard, all classes of persons will hear it — parents 
and children, the husband and the wife, the man- 
servant and the maid-servant — all will receive their 



330 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

portion in due season. It will be like leaven, leavening 
the wliole lump. 

While you utter the Almighty's voice from the sacred 
desk, this silent, sacred messenger will re-echo the 
same voice of mercy and love around the fireside and 
through all the varied scenes of life, clinching and rivet- 
ing the truths of Gospel salvation. Why do not min- 
isters see this — know this ? We are utterly astonished 
at the criminal indifference on this point. The world 
to be redeemed by preaching from the pulpit merely, 
without the aid of an efficient, sanctified press ? Never ! 
These two must go hand in hand. God so ordains. A 
twofold cord is not easily broken. 

Can any minister afford to do without the religious 
press, as a co-laborer in discussing the doctrines of 
grace, in promoting personal godliness, in urging the 
people to benevolent effort, and in communicating reli- 
gious intelligence? Nobody, who has been without 
these silent private tutors, can know their educatmg 
power for good. Have you never thought of the in- 
numerable topics of discussion which they suggest at 
the breakfast-table, the important public and benevo- 
lent measures with which, thus early, our children be- 
come familiarly acquainted — great philanthropic ques- 
tions of the day, to which, unconsciously, their attention 
is awakened, and the general spirit of intelligence 
which is evoked by these quiet visitors? Anything 
that makes home pleasant, cheerful, happy, joyous, 
thins the haunts of vice, and the thousand and one 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 331 

avenues of temptation, should certainly be regarded, 
when we consider its influence on the minds of the 
young, as a great moral and social blessing. 

The people will read something, rest assured, and if 
something valuable and soul-saving is not furnished, 
and furnished Sjjeedily, Satan will sow tares in abun- 
dance, and of the rankest kind. Alas for those neigh- 
borhoods ! 

A little forestalling might save a vrhole community 
from utter ruin ! Let Satan once get foothold, scatter 
novels, romances, love-ditties, the Couriers, Flag of the 
Unions, Fashion-plate Magazines, Jackson Davisisms, 
and other devihsms, the Petersons, Godeys, and Har- 
pers — what now ? truth find lodgment ? The die is cast, 
the soul lost ! lost ! 

Pastor, beloved, do you realize this as one that must 
give an account ? At a time like this, when our land is 
visited more fearfully and terribly than Egypt was, when 
rivers were turned into blood — when frogs, hce, flies, 
and locusts darkened the heaven, and the firstborn of 
every family was a dead corpse — is your voice raised 
like a thunderclap ? Do you run qiiicMy for life with 
your burning censers to stop the plague — stand be- 
tween the dead and the living? Wrath is gone out 
from the Lord ; an atonement must be made. (See 
Num, xvi. 46; 47.) 

" On 1 on ! Our moments hurry by, 
Like shadows of a passing cloud, 
Till general darkness wraps the sky, 
And man sleeps senseless in his shroud." 



332 THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



OUR NEW VOLUMES— BOOKS AND TRACTS. 

Go ? Yes, they will, on the wings of the wind — fly 
abroad, supersede the light, the volatile, the visionary. 
When and where salvation goes, fire pentecostal — fire 
on fire — our publications, Bible-reformatory, will speed 
their flight,. even to distant lands, instead of the works 
of Satan, the corrupting and the vile, the sickly and 
the sentimental, death and damnation : then peace, 
hope, joy, light on light, glory on glory ! Every step 
reformatory increases their circulation. 

Let truth prevail mightily, love, joy, peace, long- 
suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, tem- 
perance in all things, and our work is on ! on ! Let all 
novel-reading and puffing, all idolatry in dress, all 
tobacco selling, chewing, smoking, snuffing, and dip- 
ping, all half-heartedness, time-serving, man-fearing, 
and popularity-seeking be banished ; all crying '' peace, 
peace" when there is no peace — everything, indeed, 
that God requires and hates ; then our books and 
tracts become popular. 

In a word, let the Bible be the text-book, the guide, 
the lamp, and the light ; Jesus Christ " the chief corner- 
stone," the all in all, the same yesterday, to-day, and 
forever — the holy, the just, the merciful, and the true. 
Then our silent messengers of truth take wing, fly 
abroad, are received with open hearts and open arms 
everywhere, take the place of the novel, the romance, 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 333 

the silly, nonsensical love-tales, the half-hearted, and 
the time-serving. 

Beloved, shall we not hope on, pray on, labor on, 
fight on ? " How can two walk together, except they 
are agreed ?" *' Oh that the salvation of Israel were 
come out of Zion ! When the Lord bringeth back the 
captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice and Israel 
shall be glad." Psalm xiv. 7. " Thou shalt love thy 
neighbor as thyself." " Love is the fulfilUng of the 
law." 

Take sides with God, and all is safe. " Stand for 
Jesus ?" Yes ; " Stand for Jesus." 

'' Stand up ! stand up for Jesus ! 

The solemn watchword hear ; 
If while ye sleep he suffers, 

Away with shame and fear ! 
Where'er ye meet with evil, 

Within you or without ; 
Charge, for the God of battle, 

And put the foe to rout." 



VICIOUS LITERATUKE. 



Pakents and teachers are quite too forgetful of one 
incumbeut duty, v^z. : The guarding and guiding of the 
moral natures of the young. Our children, unattended 
by faithful advisers, are wandering away in forbidden 
paths, guideless and friendless, treading upon en- 
chanted ground, revelling among dangerous delusions. 



334 



THE SWORD THAT CUTS 




BEAUTIFUL FLOWERS. 



" Beautiful flowers, beautiful flowers, 
Fading away with earth's waning hours, 
Laying your glorious robes aside 
From the winter's blast, in the dust to hide ; 
Say, will you rise from your lowly tomb, 
When the earth is robed in her Eden bloom ? 

*' O winter hours, O winter hours, •. 
Once more your blight may crush the flowers, 
Once more your snows o'er us be cast : 
Exult not, it may be the last. 
For with the earth's long-promised King, 
Our eyes shall see an endless spring." 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 335 



BEAUTIFUL, MOST BEAUTIFUL; 

" Truth' is earnest, truth is fearless, 
Ever dwelling in the skies." 

What is more beautiful, more lovely than truth de- 
veloped, portrayed^ held up, declared fearlessly, un- 
mixed with error, proclaimed boldly, regardless of con- 
sequences ? 

" What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light ; 
and what ye hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the 
house-tops. And fear not them which kill the body, 
but are not able to kill the soul ; but rather fear Him 
who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." 

Here is beauty inimitable, the crov/ning excellence, 
the praiseworthiness, the top-stone of grace divine. 

This declaiming against all sin, every sin, Uttle sins 
and great sins. State sins, city sins. Church sins, family 
sins, individual sins ; sins long standing, covered up, 
Vv^inked at, embraced ; sins popular and unpopular, se- 
cret sins of heart and life — bringing them to light, 
holding them up to public gaze in all their ugliness 
and naked deformity — is truly sublime, majestically 
beautiful, glorious. Who dares ? 

The holy prophets did ; the apostles did ; Jesus 
Christ did. Therg is not a sin recorded in the Bible, 
not a sin known among men, that was not made to feel 
the pruning-knife, the two-edged sword, the fire and 
the hammer of God's word. Those holy men of God 
laid the axe at the root of every sin, ^nd left the con- 



336 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

sequences with God. They were faithful unto death. 
They regarded not their lives dear ; they counted all 
things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of 
Christ, and for His sake they suffered the loss of all 
things. 

Eeproving is one of those " weapons" which the 
apostle speaks of as not being " carnal, but mighty 
through God to the pulling down of strongholds." 2 
Cor, X. It is one of those "daily crosses," which 
Christ has commanded us to bear if we would be his 
followers. It is evident that if we love God with all 
our heart, we will hate sin in the same proportion ; 
and if we love our neighbors as ourselves, we will feel 
as deeply interested in their souls' salvation as our 
own ; and consequently we will not suffer sin upon 
them. Those who profess to love God, and can bear 
to hear His name profaned, and see His holy Sabbath 
polluted, without reproving the offenders, are still " in 
the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity." It 
is impossible to be a child of God and neglect this 
duty. 

Dr. Rush was once in company with a lady, a pro- 
fessor of religion, who was speaking of the pleasure she 
anticipated at the theatre in the evening. " What, go 
to the theatre ?" " Yes ; don t you ?" " Never, never r 
" Why ?" *' I will never publish to the world that I 
think Jesus Christ a bad master, and rehgion an un^jat- 
-isfying portion." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 337 

A SAVOR OF LIFE— A SAYOR OF DEATH! 

READING-ROOMS, PUBLIC AND SUNDAY-SCHOOL LIBRARIES. 

" Good books and papers live while we are dead 
Light on the darkened mind they shed, 
Good seed they sow from age to age, 
Through all this mortal pilgrimage ; 
They nurse the gems of holy trust. 
They work unthed when we are dust." 

Good books and papers preach ; bad books and 
papers preach. One is a savor of life to life, the other 
of death to death! One preaches salvation, the other 
damnation ! 

Look at this subject, friends ; turn it over, view it on 
every side ; peep into Sunday-school libraries, public 
reading-rooms — what do you see? Scorpions, adders 
that sting, serpents that bite, Satanic transformations, 
the old serpent the devil, with cloven foot concealed ! 

" As is the tree, so is the fruit." " Do men gather 
grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles ?" " Can a man 
take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?" 
" Evil communications corrupt good manners." 

Do you ask what harm books and papers will do 
tinctured with romance and folly? The same harm 
that personal intercourse would mth the bad men who 
wrote them. ' " That a man is known by the company 
he keeps," is an old proverb ; but it is no more true 
than that a man's character may be determined by 
knowing the books he reads. If a good book can't be 

15 



338 THE swor.D that cuts : 

read without making one better, a bad book cannot be 
read without making one worse. A person may be 
ruined by reading a single volume. Bad books are 
like ardent spirits, they furnish neither aliment nor 
" medicine — they are " poison." Both intoxicate — one 
the mind, the other the body. The thirst for each in- 
creases by being fed, and is never satisfied : both ruin — 
one the intellect, the other the health, and together the 
soul. The makers and venders of each are equally 
guilty and equally corrupters of the community ; and 
the safeguard against each is the same total absti- 
nence from all that intoxicates mind or body. 

The love of fiction is a growing appetite, and one 
which generally wastes more time than any other. It 
produces a distaste for healthy mental food, and a dis- 
like to strengthening mental exercise. However good 
the tone of a fiction may be, or its moral, the habit of 
craving fiction, once formed, cannot be prevented from 
gratifying itself with those novels and romances of the 
day, which may v/ell be described as " Satanic litera- 
ture." The person w^ho enters upon a course of novel- 
reading may be said to be rapidly unfitting himself for 
a noble and useful life. Then, all this reading is posi- 
tively worse than useless. We have no faith in the 
effect of teaching moral truth by fiction. No real 
knowledge is stored by it. After reading a thousand 
novels, the youth may be still unfurnished wdth the 
most necessary information. 

Nothing should find lodgment for a moment in our 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 339 

families and Sabbath-school libraries, reading-rooms, on 
our centre-tables, but the salt of the earth, light 
heavenly, intellectual and spiritual, life-giving, soul- 
kindHng ; such reading as elevates, purifies, and sancti- 
fies. Family books and papers should be of the purest 
kind ; nothing should be introduced that tends in the 
least to pervert or corrupt the rising generation. It is 
truly painful to see in some reading-rooms popular 
works of fiction, novels, romances, and works positively 
infidel in their tendency ! 

Such libraries and reading-rooms are a curse instead 
of a blessing to the community. Many a young man 
has been ruined for time and eternity by this corrupting 
literature. 

No book or periodical, whatever its merits in other 
respects, which takes the name of God in vain, uses it 
profanely or irreverently, which contains a profane 
oath, an impure or libidinous thought, or speaks lightly 
of the word of God, should ever be allowed in a family 
or reading-room. A parent should never allow a fas- 
cinating writer to say that, behind the screen to the 
eye of a child, which he would not permit any one to 
breathe into the ear. 

Byron, Scott, Shakspeare, are more or less defiled by 
profane and impure allusions, dashes or exclamations, 
that offend the ear of modesty and virtue. "What Chris- 
tian father or mother would allow Shakspeare, if he 
were now alive, to associate with a blooming circle of 
sons and daughters, or read his plays, just as they now 



340 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

stand in the best editions ? Is it possible for them to 
pass through the youthful mind and not leave a foul 
stain behind? Eead the "Personal Recollections of 
Charlotte Elizabeth," and see how narrowly she es- 
caped the loss of both body and soul by poring over 
Shakspeare's corrupting fascinations. 

Are not editors and publishers rolling up a fearful 
account for facilitating the circulation of these reptiles, 
now flooding and cursing the land? Unless some 
means can be devised to arrest this rapidly augmenting 
currency of licentious and semi-infidel literature, its 
demoralizing effects everywhere manifest, we are lost ! 
lost ! Cease ? When will this curse of all curses cease 
— that poisons the fountains of mercy, eats out the life- 
blood of spiritual life and salvation, ushering millions 
into the gulf bottomless? When will this death of 
deaths cease ? Never, till God in mercy open the eyes 
of religious editors to see the enormity of their guilt in 
puffing this light bread, these popular, fashionable 
monthlies, stepping-stones to the vilest French novels — 
until ministers and church-members cease to patronize 
these sugar-coated poisons of Satan. 



You should preach everywhere, by look, thought, 
word, act — by word of mouth, by pen, the tract, the 
book, the periodical. " Out of the abundanee of the 
heart the mouth speaketh." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 



341 




AN OLIVE BRANCH. 



The olive-tree is one of the earliest trees mentioned 
in Scripture, and is an emblem of peace among all 
nations, because an olive-brancli, brought by the doye 
to Noah in the Ark, was the first sign which he re- 
ceived of peace restored between heaven and earth, 
after the bursting forth of God's wrath in the waters of 
the flood. Gen, viii. 11. It is an evergreen tree, and 
very long lived — an emblem of a fresh and enduring 
piety. Psalm lii. 8. Around an old trunk young plants 
shoot up from the same root to adorn the parent stock 
when hving, and succeed it when dead ; hence the allu- 
sion in describing the family of the just. Ps, cxxviii. 3. 



342 THE SWOPtD THAT CUTS 



NO FIRE WITHIN— NONE WITHOUT. 

MISSIONATING. 

" Keep the gospel-trumpet sounding, 
Always give a certain sound : 
Lo, temptations are abounding ; 
Watch and pray — your help is found." 

Eeadee, are you a missionary ? What kind ? Where 
do yon missionate ? When ? How often ? A mission- 
ary of the cross is one sent of God. Christ came from 
heaven. What for ? To missionate ? Yes ; to mis- 
sionate — go about doing good, healing the sick, raising 
the dead, casting out devils. " The Spirit of the Lord 
God is upon me ; because the Lord hath anointed m-e 
to preach good tidings unto the meek ; he hath sent 
me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty 
to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them 
that are bound." Isaiah, Ixi. 1-3. Have you this 
same missionary spirit of Christ ? " The foxes have 
holes, and the birds of the air have nests ; but the Son 
of man hath not where to lay his head." 

Missionary friend, is your conversation, your daily 
walk such as becometh the Gospel of Christ? Have 
you come out from the world, separated yourself en- 
tirely from its folHes and fashions, and presented your 
body a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, 
which is your reasonable service?" Is your adorning 
that " of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 343 

of God of great price," instead of plaiting the liair, 
wearing of gold, pearls, or costly array ? Does your 
personal appearance correspond with Gospel purity 
and simplicity — commend itself to every man's con- 
science in the sight of God ? 

The beloved Judson was a devoted missionary to Bur- 
mah. " Though dead, he yet speaks." In his appeal 
to the sisters of America, on the subject of conforming 
to the world in dress or fashionable costume, he says : 

" Dear sisters, let me appeal to conscience, and in- 
quire what is the real motive for wearing ornamental 
and costly apparel ? Is it not the desire of setting off 
one's person to the best advantage, and of exciting the 
admiration of others ? Is not such dress calculated to 
gratify self-love, and cherish sentiments of vanity and 
pride ? And is it not the Aiture of those sentiments to 
acquire strength from indulgence? Do such motives 
and sentiments comport with the meek, humble, and 
self-denying religion of Jesus Christ? I would here 
respectfully suggest that these questions will not be 
answered so faithfully in the midst of company, as 
when quite alone, kneeling before God." 

Consider the words of the apostle (1 Tim, ii. 9) : "I 
will also that women adorn themselves in modest ap- 
parel, with shamefacedness and sobriety, not icith 
hroidered hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array.'' (Also 
1 Feter, iii. 3.) 

Surely, you can hold out no longer. Can you rise 
from your knees in your present attire ? Methinks I 



344 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

see you taking off your necklaces and ear-rings, tearing 
away your ribbons, and ruffles, and superfluities of 
headdress ; and I hear you exclaim, " "What shall 
we* do next?" — an important question, deserving seri- 
ous consideration. The ornaments you are removing, 
though useless and worse than useless in their present 
state, can be so disposed of as to feed the hungry, 
clothe the naked, relieve the sick, enlighten the dark- 
minded, disseminate the Holy Scriptures, spread the 
glorious Gospel throughout the world. 

'* To tents of woe, to beds of pain, 
Your cheerful feet repair ; 
And with the gifts your hands bestow, 
Reheve the miseries there." 

No one is duly prepared for missionary labor abroad, 
either in a foreign or domestic field, unless he is first a 
missionary at home, in his own house and out of it. 

" The love of God flows just as much 
As that of ebbing self subsides ; 
Our hearts (the scantiness is such) 
Bear not the conflict of two rival tides.^^ 

Friend, begin at home to missionate — in your own 
house, your parlor, your kitchen, with your next neigh- 
bor, and so on. Let your missionary spirit be seen 
here, before you talk about missionating abroad. Per- 
sons who have no heart to do good and communicate, 
pull sinners out of the fires of hell in their own vicin- 
ity, are not the ones to go to the heathen abroad. 
Christian men. Christian women, so called, without 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 345 

souls on fire, baptized pentecostally, full of faith and 
the Holy Spirit, are not the ones to save the perishing 
heathen. 

"What sad, awful mistakes are made by missionary- 
boards, in sending out mere skeletons of piety, gay, 
fashionable, worldly-minded — ^having a name to live 
while dead ! What an immense amount of outfittings 
have been expended on unworthy objects — w^orse than 
lost — widow's mites, Ukewise of hard earnings — that 
better have been cast into the depths of the sea ! Is it 
not an imposition, a burning shame, to send forth to 
the poor heathen mere nominals — those professing 
godliness, who have not learned the first principles of 
Gospel salvation ? " Woe unto the world because of 
offences, for it must be that offences come ; but woe to 
that man by whom the offence cometh." 

Let those offering themselves as missionaries first 
be proved at home. Are they active in the divine life, 
consecratedly- — given up wholly, unreservedly to God's 
service, constrained by God's love, with right hands 
severed, right eyes plucked out ? 

" The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are 
few ; pray ye, therefore, the Lord of the harvest, that 
he will send forth laborers into his harvest." 



" For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith 
without works is dead also." James, ii. 26. 

15^ 



346 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 



MISSIONATING FOR THE LORD, OR FOR THE* 
• DEVIL— WHICH ? 

" Come, look o'er the nations in darkness who moan, 
Beyond where the light of the Gospel has gone. 
Yes, lift up your eyes, and behold each ripe field, 
All white for the harvest, their increase to yield. 
Then haste to the heathen, and gladly proclaim 
The news of salvation, in Jesus's name." 

MissiONATiNG are you ? For whom ? the Lord or for 
Satan? for light or for darkness? for heaven or for 
hell? Is your life a missionary life? Does your 
whole being, spirit, soul, and body missionate — your 
thoughts, words, and actions — your every-day walk? 
What unruly sinner did you labor to save — to pull out 
of the fires of hell — the last week, the last month, the 
last year? What one yesterday and to-day? How 
many perishing souls have you pointed to Jesus, mean- 
while saying, "This is the way, walk ye in it;" "es- 
cape for your life ;" " look not behind you ?" How 
many fervent prayers have you offered for salvation to 
go forth as the Hght of the morning? What Bible 
truth have you hid in your own heart, that you might 
not sin against God ? What number of tears have you 
shed for the desolations of Zion, because so few come 
to her solemn feasts ? " They that sow in tears shall 
reap in joy." Can you say with Jeremiah, " O that my 
head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, 
that I might weep da}^ and night for the slain of the 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 347 

daughter of my people?" Jer. ix. 1. Or with Paul? 
Rom, ix. 2, 3. Are you fighting the Lord's battles, act- 
ing aggressively — carrying the warfare into the heart 
of the enemy's country, stretching every nerve Godward 
in the path of dutj— flying on salvation's wing ? In a 
word, are you on fire, pentecostallj^, for God's glory in 
the salvation of a world lost ! lost! 

What say you, friend, in reply to these few interroga- 
tories, intimately connected A\dth the missionary life ? 
Is your answer in the affirmative or in the negative ? 
Can you say " amen and amen'' to every item here 
specified ; or are you a woman of fashion — a mere but- 
terfly — a tittle-tattler — all talk, and no Jesus ? 



Make the tree good, the fruit wiU be good ; where 
the fountain is pure the stream is pure. When the 
heart is right, goodness flows out spontaneously, readi- 
ly, freely, continually. Saving sinners wiU be upper- 
most, your meat and your drink. Every suitable 
opportunity will be embraced in testifying to God's 
goodness, and in warning sinners to flee the wrath to 
come. A word here, a word there, will burst forth. 
''Go speak to that young man" will whisper in the 
secret recesses of your heart. And " to obey is better 
than sacrifice." Open your mouth wide, and God will 
fiUit. 

No suitable opportunity wiU be lost when the soul is 
on* fire, and God's glory kept constantly in view — 
" Stand up for Jesus" will ring ! 



348 



THE 8W0IID THAT CUTS : 




WOMAN'S POWER FOR GOOD OR FOR EVIL. 

'' Nor steel nor fire itself hath power 
Like woman in her conquering hour. 
Do tliou but fair — mankind adore thee ! 
Smile, and a world is weak before thee !" 

The poet has disclosed the whole secret of woman's 
conquering powder. Fair in her virtue, pure in her 
thought, smiling in her goodness, she wields an influ- 
ence which mailed warriors never could. Her strength 
is in her Christian graces, her weapon is divine love ; 
and her power is resistless when these are combined 
vrith modest merit and dictated by conscious duty. 

"Female piety is the gem which of all others en- 
riches the coronet of a lady's character. Nature may 
lavish much on her person — the enchantment of*the 
countenance — the grace and strength of her intellect — 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 349 

yet her loveliness is uncrowned till piety throws around 
the sweetness and power of its charms." 

" A bud of moral beauty. Let the dews 
Of knowledge and the light of virtue wake it 
In richest fragrance and in purest hues." 

The influence of woman is wonderful for good or 
dreadful for evil ! With a principle of piety ruling in 
her heart, her influence acts hke a charm and becomes 
almost irresistible: A young lady, by her consistent 
Christian example, may exert an untold power. We 
know the respect, and almost worship, which young 
men, no matter how wicked they may be themselves, 
pay to a consistent Christian lady, be she young or 
old. 

A gentleman once said to a lady, who boarded in the 
same house with him, that her life was a constant 
proof of the Christian religion. Often the simple re- 
quest of a lady will keep a young man from doing 
wrong. We have known this to be the case very fre- 
quently ; and young men have been kept from breaking 
the Sabbath, from drinking, from chewing and smoking 
the vile Indian weed, just because a lady whom they 
respected, or for whom they had an affection, re- 
quested it. A tract given, an invitation to go to church, 
a request that your friend would read the Bible daily, 
will- often be regarded when a more powerful appeal 
from other sources would fall unheeded upon his heart. 
Many of the gentlemen whom you meet in society are 
away from the influence of parents and sisters, and they 



350 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

Avill respond to any interest taken in their welfare. We 
all speak of a young man's danger from evil compan- 
ions, and the very bad influence which his dissipated 
associates have upon him. A gentleman's character is 
formed to a great extent by the ladies that he associ- 
ates with before he becomes a complete man of the 
world. A young man is pretty much what his sister 
and young lady friends choose to make him. We 
knew a family where the sisters enccAiraged their young 
brothers to smoke, thinking it was manlj^, and to 
mingle with gay, dissipated fellows, because they 
thought it "smart;" and they did mingle with them 
body and soul, and abused the same sisters shamefully. 
The influence began further back than with their gentle- 
men companions. It began with their sisters, and was 
carried on through the forming years of their char- 
acter. 

How many a doting mother weeps over a darling son, 
a slave to the wine-cup ! How many women endure the 
misery of the drunkard's wife ! How many a fond sis- 
ter has cause for shame because a once noble brother 
" tarries long at the wine !" And yet, we have seen a 
mother, after quafiing her morning dram, scrape the 
saturated sugar from the bottom of her glass, offer it to 
her little bright-eyed, rosy-cheeked, curly-headed boy, 
and bid him eat it ! Tell that mother that her intelli- 
gent child will become a drunkard, and she will reply, 
if she speaks the sentiments of her heart, that she 
would rather that he should die. Still she is giving him 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 351 

that which may form the germ of an appetite which 
Avill grow with his growth, and strengthen with his 
strength, till it prove strong enough to lead him into 
the dark paths of the drunkard, and, eventually, down 
to a tippler's grave. 

O ye mothers, wives, and sisters, you can teach 
your children, husbands, and brothers that to drink in- 
toxicating beverages is harmless; and then, as they 
go forth into the world, they will everywhere meet the 
" serpent of the still ;" and if they shall become ruined, 
degraded, pifr' ul tipplers, where will rest the blame? 

O woman! ponder well the words of one who has 
tasted the bitter draught of drunkenness : 

" Woman, thy deadliest foe's the red wine, glowing 
Within the ciystal glass. Then dash it down ! 
For she whose hand the poison-stream sets flowing. 
Her holiest joys in its dark depths shall di'own." 

With a full knowledge of all the evils which result 
from drinking, women add the first fii'e to smouldering 
appetite, which in the end A^ ill draw their possessors 
down to the lowest depths of degradation. Men do not 
commence drinking at low groggeries. They start in 
the higher shops, and many times at the hearthside. 
And upon the wives, mothers, and sisters, who do not 
frown upon drinking in the home and social circles, 
rests a fearful responsibility. For the wealth of worlds 
we would not incur it. 

The safegTiard of woman's happiness rests on the 
sanctity of home. If her influence there is not thrown 



352 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

in tlie scale of right and linmanitj, if she gives way to 
a great moral WTong which has crushed thousands of 
her sex, then is home and community doubly cursed. 

If sisters are watchful and affectionate, they may in 
various ways, by entering into any little plan with in- 
terest, by introducing their younger brothers into good 
ladies' society, lead them along till their character is 
formed, and then a high-toned respect for ladies, and a 
manly self-respect, will keep them from mingling with 
low society. 

If a young man sees that the religion which in youth 
he was taught to venerate is lightly thought of, and 
perhaps sneered at by the young ladies with whom he 
associates, we can hardly expect him to think that it is 
the thing for him. Let none say they have no influence 
at all. This is not possible. You cannot live without 
having some sort of influence, any more than you can 
without breathing. One thing is just as unavoidable 
as the other. Beware, then, what kind of influence it 
is that you are constantly exerting. An invitation to 
take a glass of wine, or to play a game of cards, may 
kindle the fires of internpferance or gambling, w^hich will 
burn forever. A jest given at the expense of religion, 
a light, trifling manner in the house of God, or any of 
the numerous ways in which you may show your dis- 
regard for the souls of others, may be the means of 
ruining many for time and eternity. 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 353 



FEMALE IlSrEBElATES— DEUNKEIST WOMEN. 

Oh ! oh ! what a sight ! Run, eun ! escape for yoiu' 
life ! Is it so ? Can it be a lovely, dehcate female, to 
whom we look for all that is pure, yirtuous, angelic, 
under the influence of the intoxicating bowl ? Alas ! 
too true — not only among the lower grades of society, 
in hovels of wretchedness and degradation, but in the 
higher ranks, among women who have wealthy hus- 
bands and richly-furnished parlors. 

And to what do we attribute this growing evil ? Not 
to one cause only, but to many. One is the free use 
.of domestic wines ; another, the silence of the pulpit, 
while church-members manufacture, and sell, and sip 
the " accursed thing." 

This evil is becoming more and more prevalent. It 
is truly alarming to mtness the extent of moderate 
drinking. We are credibly informed that very many 
professors of religion are habitually accustomed to 
place wines and brandies on their dinner-tables ! So 
common and so popular is this moderate tippling, es- 
pecially among the higher classes, that ministers of the 
Gospel are in some instances awed into silence, wink 
at the abomination, and very seldom raise the warning 
voice. 

Is it a marvel, then, that the curse of intemperance 
is rapidly on the increase, spreading its raven wdngs of 



354 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

misery, ruin, desolation, and damnation through the 
land — among the fairer sex ? 

'' Who hath woe ? who hath sorrow? who hath con- 
tention ? who hath w^ounds without cause ? They that 
tarry long at the wane, they that go to seek mixed 
wine. Look not thou upon the wine ; at the last it 
biteth like a serpent and stingeth like an adder." 
Frov. xxiii. 29-32. 

Ver}" much of the guilt and condemnation of this 
wretched business lies at the church-door ! 

Again, another cause of female intoxication is — ar- 
dent spirits which are often commended by some poor, 
ignorant, besotted, wine-bibbing, tobacco chewing or 
smoking doctor. 

Finally, we regret to say that many reputable physi- 
cians are falling into the habit, more and more, of 
advising alcoholic remedies, either frankly and above- 
board, or under the disguise of tonics, tinctures, and 
bitters. Scarcely a religious newspaper of any name 
or sect can be taken up, which does not contain adver- 
tisements of these same mischievous agencies, wdth 
"Reverend" certifiers, ad nauseam. The editors of 
respectable medical journals, and the pubhshers of the 
same, lend their aid towards the introduction of wines, 
and beers, and brandies into the families by whose 
patronage they live ; thus prostituting their influence to 
vile purposes for the sake of a few dollars they receive 
for advertising those pernicious articles. 

Here is a religious editor, for filthy lucre, advertds- 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 355 

mg and puffing '' pure liquors for the use of the 
sick," and telling where such a brand of gin and such 
a quality of whiskey can be had ; showing, however, 
some little deference to public decency, by saying, '' So 
long as people will take domestic medicines, they ought 
at least to discriminate the good from the bad." 

How is it possible to " discriminate" between good 
and bad London Dock Gin, and Philadelphia "Wliiskey, 
and French Cordials, when all are bad — when the use 
of any of them for a short time tends to set up a desire 
for more, which no- man of intelligence, and who has 
any respect for himself or truth, will deny? How 
many men and women under the habitual use of tonics, 
bitters, beers, and cordials, have waked up at last to 
the fearful truth that " they cannot do without them — 
must have them," let our asylums, and prisons, and 
poorhouses testify ; and let ruined families, and blasted 
reputations, and broken hearts the land over confirm 
the terrible record. He, and he only, is safe from a 
drunkard's death, who never tastes a drop of any- 
thing that can intoxicate. 

*' Turn, mortal, turn ! thy danger know ; 
Where'er thy foot can ti-ead, 
The earth rings hollow from belovf , 
And warns thee off her dead. 

" Tm-n, Christian, turn ! thy soul apply 
To ti'uths divinely given ; 
The bones that underneath thee lie, 
Shall live for hell or heaven." 



356 THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



THE WINE BUSINESS— THE HOP BUSINESS. 

What a curse ! loliat a curse ! Increasingly ? Yes. 
Western New York is poisoned to death ! Ohio is 
poisoned to death ! Ministers and church-members, not 
a few, put their hands to this " accursed thing," sip 
domestic wines from grapes and from other fruits, as a 
common drink, at meal-times. Professed teachers in 
Israel, and very many professing godliness, store their 
cellars with this serpent of serpents — what Solomon 
terms a "mocker." "Wine is a mocker, . . . and 
they that are deceived by it are not wise." 

We know a distinguished divine — a teacher in a 
popular seminary — carried away with this abomination, 
and students under his tuition, and the community 
round about, are falling into this trap of Satan, through 
the example and influence of this wine-bibbing teacher 
and minister. Surely " evil communications corrupt 
good manners." Some of the members of his own 
church are in a horrible backslidden state, dumpish 
and sottish, from sipping the wine-cup ! What will 
Satan do next ? 

This wine business is a stumbling-stone — a rock of 
offence all through the land — one chief obstacle to the 
onw^ard movement of the temperance cause. And if a 
stop is not put to this devilish work, multitudes will 
continue to fill drunkards' graves — rush on to hell — 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 357 

m 

fires unqnencliable ! And in whose skirts will the blood 
of these perished souls be found ? 

What renders the case more fearfully appalling is, 
many temperance men, so-called, are looking favorably 
upon the use of wine ! 

All over the country, since it has been purposed to 
substitute this drink for brandy and rum, a multitude 
of temperance families — those who signed the pledge 
years and years ago, and fought for total abstinence — 
have manufactured it in their families from grapes, if 
they had them, and if not, from other fruits, and com- 
menced its use. 

" Look at the science of this subject," says a medical 
writer. " Wine contains from fifteen to th rty per cent, 
of alcohol. Port wine may be taken as a standard, and 
contains twenty 'three per cent. Now, what is alcohol ? 
A poison. Every writer on toxicology thus classifies^ 
it. This fact alone should lead us to condemn it. A 
very small quantity of alcohol injected into the veins of 
a man or animal produces immediate death. It changes 
and vitiates the character of the secretions. Healthy 
saliva reddens litmus-paper, but after a small quantity 
of alcohol has been taken, this paper, when touched to 
the tongue, becomes green, showing that it has been 
deteriorated. Mixed with the food during the process 
of digestion, this vital process is delayed. 'It is a 
remarkable fact,' says Dr. Dundas Thompson, ' that al- 
cohol mixed ydth the gastric juice produces a precipi- 
tate, so that the fluid is no longer capable of digesting 



358 THE SWOED THAT CUTS: 

animal or vegetable matter. Drs. Todd and Bowman 
say that alcoholic stimulants ' retard digestion by cans- 
ign coagulation of the pepsin, an essential element of 
the gastric juice.' They irritate and inflame the coats 
of the stomach, and in time produce loss of its tone." 

~\Ve might go on till we have shown that there is not 
an organ of the body but is unfavorably affected by al- 
coholic stimulants. Science proclaims them poisons, 
and that they produce a poisonous effect ; and too 
many dying persons have echoed back the same words 
in tones deep and sorrowful. 

An American divine, recently writing from Italy, 
says : " We have heard Americans earnestly declare 
' that nobody gets drunk in Italy, or in any country 
where wine takes the place of stronger liquors.' Now, 
the Italian laborer rarely begins his potations until his 
day's work is done ; consequently, travellers see and 
know very little of the extent of them. They carouse 
from about sundown to ten, eleven, and often twelve 
o'clock at night. Their money spent, they reel to their 
wretched homes, and the cries of their children and the 
groans of their wives soon tell of the fury and brutality 
which mark the drunkard the world over, whether he 
wears homespun or broadcloth." 



" Be not among wine-bibbers ; among riotous eaters 
of flesh." Prov. xxiii. 20. 



THE FIKE THAT BUENS. 



359 




360 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 



BOWING DOWN—DOING HOMAGE. 

This was the way of expressing respect or reverence 
in olden times. Abraham showed respect to strangers, 
bowing himself before them to the earth. Gen, xviii. 
2, 23. 

The forms of politeness and civility in Eastern coun- 
tries have always been more extravagant in their ap- 
pearance than any to which we have been accustomed. 
To show peculiar respect, it was common to bow the 
body downward almost to the ground, or fall entirely 
prostrate. 

Oh that all sinners would bow to King Jesus ! He 
stands ready, with open arms, to receive every return- 
ing penitent. " Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye. 
The Spirit and the bride say, Come." 

" For God so loved the world, that he gave his only- 
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should 
not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent 
not his Son into the world to condemn the world ; but 
that the world through him might be saved. He that 
believeth on him is not conden\ned ; but he that be- 
lieveth not is condemned already, because he hath not 
believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God." 
John, iii. 16-18. 

Sinners must bow submissively, or sink lower than 
the grave. 



THE FIBE THAT. BURNS. 361 



DEVILS! DEVILS! DEVILS! 

A DEYTL of deyils, is he not ? Would devils do what 
a poor, miserable, besotted drunken husband does, if 
they could ? 

The drunkard throws away reason, nullifies con- 
science, does all in his power to lessen his claim to the 
character of a human being. He who is addicted to 
the vice of drunkenness, becomes not a fool or a mad- 
man only, but a fit companion for the most filthy and 
stupid of the brute creation ; he may fitly be compared 
to the swine that wallows in the mire. 

The beast of God's creating is honorable, compared 
with a man who makes himself a beast. But the intem- 
perate man not only assumes this degrading character, 
he stirs up all the wicked tempers that are in him, and 
causes the fire of anger, malice, or lust, to burn seven 
times hotter than before. 

In all the catalogue of vices there are none whose 
destructive effects, in a moral sense, exceed those of 
drunkenness. It defiles the conscience, hardens the 
heart, and brings on spiritual lethargy. It is a dis- 
closer of secrets, a betrayer of trusts, a destroyer of 
property and credit — an introducer of disorder, distress, 
and wretchedness in famihes. It is an enemy to de- 
cency and modesty, and a sure and certain introduction 
to debauchery. It leads to obscene and scurrillous dis- 
course, to profane swearing and blasphemy, to quarrels, 

16 



362 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

fighting, and murder. It is the father of mischief, the 
mother of vice, the nurse of riot. It deforms the vis- 
age, corrupts the breath, stupefies the senses, weakens 
the memory, destroys the judgment. It robs a man of 
his dignity, undermines his health, begets unnatural 
thirst, inflames the blood, and generates fatal diseases. 
It is a bewitching poison ; it is a voluntary madness. 
It leads us from God and all good, provokes His judg- 
ments, hastens on an untimely and miserable death, 
and at last destroys the soul ! 

But, as to drunken husbands, whoever saw the like in 
our cities and villages ! In New York city the scenes 
are truly appalling, heart-rending! In some houses, 
where many famihes are tenanted, you not unfrequently 
find one, two, three, and sometimes four miserably de- 
graded inebriates, drunken sots, called husbands and 
fathers, with a poor, emaciated, heart-stricken, crushed 
wife, with children growing up in wretchedness and 
ruin ! This deplorable state of things exists more or 
less in all parts of the city. All this, and still more, from 
the cursed traffic in distilled and fermented liquors. 
Some of the most amiable and lovely women are un- 
equally yoked to these bodies of living death, doomed 
for life — living daily in a purgatory! What more 
shockingly offensive and heart-sickening to a sensitive, 
virtuous woman, than to witness her companion for life, 
sacredly and solemnly sw^orn to be her protector, sup- 
porter, and comforter, come reeling, staggering home 
at a late hour, under the influence of the intoxicating 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 363 

bowl, loathsomely disfigured, foaming with rage and 
terror, belching horrid oaths and blasphemies, beating 
wife and children, and turning everything upside down ? 

This picture is but faintly drawn. Thousands of 
families are thus situated in this and other large cities, 
where Satan rules and reigns, scatters firebrands, 
arrows, and death, in the form of liquid death and 
distilled damnation ! 

"O thou invisible spirit of drink, if thou hadst no 
other name to be called by, let us call thee — devil." 

The drunken husband ! We defy the whole race of 
philologists to place together two words of any lan- 
guage more expressive of despair and anguish than 
" drunken husband." 

In visiting from house to house you will often find a 
wife, a mother, surrounded by her Uttle ones, shivering 
with cold, pinched with hunger, penniless, destitute of 
fuel, food, and raiment at the most inclement season — 
while the husband and father is abroad with his 
drunken beastly associates, at these sink-holes of the pit, 
spending his last farthing for tobacco and rum ! Oh 
wretched state of keen despau- ! What situation this 
side hell more deplorable ? And still these drunkard, 
pauper, beggar, and devil makers are permitted to go 
on, doing their work of death in open day, unchecked, 
unrebuked ! 

Says a beloved minister : " Before God and man, be- 
fore the Church and the world, I impeach intemper- 
*^nce. I charge it with the murder of innumerable 



364 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

souls. In this country, blessed with freedom and 
plenty, the word of God and the liberties of true reli- 
gion, I charge it as the cause, whatever be their source 
elsewhere, of almost all the poverty, and almost all the 
crime, and almost all the misery, and almost all the ig- 
norance, and almost all the irreligion, that disgrace and 
afflict our land. 

" I speak the words of truth and soberness. I do in 
my conscience believe that these intoxicating stimulants 
have sunk into perdition more men and women than 
found a grave in that deluge which swept over the 
highest hill-tops — engulfing a world/ of which but eight 
were saved." 

How did a drunken man anciently appear ? 

" Thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of 
the sea, or as he that lieth on the top of a mast. They 
have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick ; 
they have beaten me, and I felt it not. When shall I 
awake? I will seek it yet again." Prov. xxiii. 34, 35. 

" Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, 
that they may follow strong drink ; that continue until 
night, till wine inflame them." Isa, v. 11. 

'^ They shall say to the elders of his city, this our son 
is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice, 
he is a glutton and a drunkard. And all the men of 
the city shall stone him with stones, that he die ; so 
shalt thou put evil away from among you, and all Is- 
rael shall hear and fear." Beut. xxi. 20. 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 



365 




SIGNING THE TEMPERANCE-PLEDGE. 



^' We will not use intoxicating liquors as a beverage, 
nor traffic in them ; we will not provide them as an 
article of entertainment, or for persons in our employ- 
ment ; and in all suitable ways we will discountenance 
their use throughout the community." 

FIYE OBJECTIONS TO CHILDKEN's SIGNING THE PLEDGE 

ANSWEKED. 



1. They are too young. Ans, But they are not too 
young to learn to drink. Many a child has become a 
drunkard. They are not too young then to be fortified 
against the tempter. 

2. They do not understand the nature of a pledge. 



366 ^ THE SWOED THAT CUTS : 

Ans. This is the way to teach them. They here form 
an experimental acquaintance with it. 

3. It is destroying their freedom, making them slaves 
to the pledge, so that they cannot afterward do as they 
would. Alls. The same may be said of all contracts 
and agi^eements, of all promises of obedience to pa- 
rents, of love to one another, and of love to their 
Father in heaven. 

4. It will do no good ; they can be temperate with- 
out it. Ans, It can do no harm, and may save them 
from a drunkard's grave. 

5. It is binding them to do what, when they come to 
the years of maturity, they may not wish to do, and 
will make them hypocrites. Ans. Eather say it is 
teaching them to do right, so that they will always wish 
to do right, and never be hypocrites. The Bible says, 
" Train up a child in the way he should go, and when 
he is old he will not depart from it." Thousands of 
children have signed the pledge, and not one in a hun- 
dred has, probably, ever regretted, it, or been the worse 
for it ; while thousands have been kept by it from the 
way of the destroyer. Let there, then, be a pledge- 
book in every place, in every school. Oh, if there 
were, how few of the dear children and youth would 
ever be led into the path of the drunkard ! 

"Woe to him that giveth his neighbor drink, that 
puttest thy bottle to him, and makest him drunken." 
Hab. ii. 15. " Nor drunkards . . . shall inherit 
the kingdom of God." 1 Cor. vi. 10. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 367 



THE FIRST TEMPERANCE SOCIETY. 

A WORD TO OUR YOUNG READERS. 

" We'll sign the pledge to drink no moreP 

The first temperance society was formed by Jonadab, 
the son of Rechab, more than twenty-seven hundred 
years ago. He lived in the reign of Jehu, one of the 
kings of Israel. He worshipped God, and he desired 
to bring up his children in the fear and love of God. 
The sons of Jonadab were temperate men. When 
wine was offered them, they made answer : " We will 
drink no wine ; our father drank none, and we will 
be obedient to the command of Jonadab, the son of 
Eechab." — " We will drink no wine," said his tribe, 
" for Jonadab, the son of Eechab, our father, com- 
manded us, saying. Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye 
nor your sons, forever." They put away the cup, say- 
ing, " We have obeyed the voice of Jonadab, the son 
of Rechab, our father, in all that he charged us, to 
drink no wine in all our days, we, our wives, our sons, 
nor our daughters." Happy family ! of how few, if 
any, of ours could it be said — in which, for three hun- 
dred years, there had never been a drunkard to break 
a mother's heart, to bring shame on those who loved 
him, to fill a dishonored grave ! However people may 
or may not think it their duty to set the example, and 
rear their children up in the customs of the Rechabites, 



368 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

they cannot but admire the wisdom of this man. Hold- 
ing prevention to be better than cure, and that, as all 
experience proves, it is much easier to keep people out 
of temptation than to save them in it, Jonadab, while 
enjoining his descendants to drink no wine, seeks to 
protect them from temptation. These men and women 
who refused to drink wine, learned the fifth command- 
ment when they were boys and girls. They honored 
their father and mother, and their days were prolonged. 
It is said that their descendants still live near Mecca, 
in Arabia, and drink no wine. 

It is better to be poor and temperate, than to be rich 
and a drunkard. Let it be your resolution to be "tem- 
perate in all things," and to say, as did the Kechabite's 
children, if you are ever asked to drink what may in- 
toxicate, " "We will not drink ;" for " wine is a mocker, 
and strong drink is raging, and whosoever is deceived 
thereby is a fool." Prov, xx. 1. 

Parents may also learn how permanent are holy 
precepts, when seconded by consistent examples. If 
children are trained in the way they ought to go, we 
have the Divine assurance that w^hen they are old they 
will not depart from it. For two hundred years, at 
least, this was true of the children of Jonadab. And 
their influence yet lives : it will never die. So Chris- 
tian influence, now put forth in the training of children, 
shall not be lost. The same principles of temperance, 
of frugality, and of piety, will be productive of health, 
and of the salvation which is in Jesus Christ. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 369 



rORGIYE AND FORGET. 

HINTS TO LITTLE FOLKS AKD GREAT FOLKS. 

" Forgive, and ye shall be forgiven." Luke, vi. 37. 
"How oft? Until seventy times seven." Jia^^. xviii. 
21. (See also Matt vi. 12, 15 ; Mark, xi. 25, 26, etc.) 

*' Forgive ! 'Tis Heaven's divine command, 

The measure of its grace : 
Said Jesus, * When ye praying stand 

Within the holy place, 
Bring no resentments in your hand, 

No frowns upon your face.' " 

Friends, do yon forgive yonr enemies, love them, 
pray for them ? 

" Though oft repeated — seven times seven, 

In guilt's most hateful forms, 
* Forgive as thou wouldst be forgiven ;' 
Dost thou accept the terms?" 

We hear people say sometimes that they forgive, but 
tvill not forget. What does that mean ? Is there any 
real forgiveness in it ? 

" ' We forgive the offence, but we cannot forget ;' 
How often that language we've heard, 
And felt that forgive in such company set, 
Yf as a vain and meaningless word." 

We must fi'om the /lea?^^ forgive. When we feel kind- 
ly, and have a tender love for the erring, we forgive, 
and not till then. 

16- 



370 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

If we have the spirit of Christ we can easily forgive, 
but with any other spirit it is impossible. 

We do not inquire whether or not you love the ac- 
tions of wicked folks, their evil deeds — this, if you love 
the Lord, you cannot do ; but do you love their souls, 
pity them, pray God to have mercy on them ? Christ 
prayed for his murderers ; so did Stephen. Christ says, 
"Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do 
good to them that hate you, and pray for them who de- 
spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be 
the children of your Father who is in heaven." 

Jesus, when enduring the agony of the cross, prayed 
for His tormentors, ''Father, forgive them, for they 
know not what they do." So, too, the last words of St. 
Stephen were a petition for his murderers, '' Lord, lay 
not this sin to their charge." This is the spirit of a 
Christian. If we do not possess it, whatever else we 
may have, we do not belong to Christ. We are yet in 
our sins. Did not Jesus teach us to pray, " Forgive us 
our debts as we forgive our debtors ?" And did he not 
declare, " If ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither 
will your Father forgive your trespasses ? If we would 
receive mercy, we must be willing to exercise it toward 
others ; if we would be forgiven, we must forgive and 
forget. 

" We must seek to forget, or we cannot forgive, 
However our reason may strive, 
For it whispers, if just, the resentment should live 
While we keep the remembrance alive." 



THE FIRE THAT BUENS. 



371 




372> THE SWOllD THAT CUTS 



FOLLY IN HIGH PLACES. 

Shotvt, pompous, ostentatious, superstitious ! "Wick- 
ed ? Heayen-dariugly !^ '^ The kings of the earth 
set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together 
against the Lord and against his anointed. . . . He 
that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh : the Lord shall 
have them in derision." Psalm i. 2, 4. 

"Would this pompous heathenish procession (as seen 
in the engraving) exist if Jesus reigned, Gospel purity 
and simplicity prevailed — the fruit of the Spirit, love, 
joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith ? 
And why does not the Gospel shine brightly, even in 
these dark places, '^ full of the habitations of cruelty?" 
Are our skirts, as a Christian nation, clean from the 
blood of these souls, perishing for lack of spiritual 
knowledge? Have we obeyed the solemn requisition 
of our ascending Lord, '' Go ye into all the world, and 



* This folly and wickedness is on a par Avitli the great celebration 
of the eighteen-hundredth anniversary of St. Peter's death, and the 
canonization of twenty-five martyrs, who died in Japan, as said, which 
took place in Eome lately. There was a grand procession of prelates, 
priests, mcnks, and soldiers. St. Peter's was most magnificently 
decorated with cloths of gold, silver, tapestries, paintings, and two 
hnndi-ed thousand yards of crimson silk. The building was lighted 
with many millions of wax crndles. There were one hundred thou- 
sand people within its walls, including the ex-king of Naples, the 
foreign ministers, five hundred cardinals, archbishops, and bishops, 
and manv tliousands of clergymen, priests, friars, and monks. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 373 

preacli the Gospel to every creature. He that believ- 
eth and is baptized, shall be saved ; but he that be- 
lieveth not, shall be damned." Ilarh, xvi. 15, 16. 

Had all the missionaries sent forth by the different 
" Boards" been fire — fire on fire, gospelly — would mil- 
lions on millions now be sitting in moral darkness, 
on the way to perdition, fires eternal, unquenchable ? 

Alas for sick heads and faint hearts ! 

"• God gave us hands — one left, one right, 
The first to help ourselves, the other 
To stretch abroad in kindly might, 
And help along our needy hr other. ^^ 

We are accustomed to think and speak of mission- 
aries to the heathen reverentially, as men and v/omen 
on the altar Christ Jesus, given up wholly, unreserv- 
edly, ^ndi forever to the service of God, spirit, soul, and 
body ; soldiers of the cross, enduring hardness, imitat- 
ing Jesus in lowliness, self-denial, perseverance, holy 
boldness, and cross-bearing, full of faith and the spirit 
of all grace, " strong m the Lord and in the power of 
his might," baptized into the spirit of Jesus, with souls 
on fire for truth and salvation. 

We call to remembrance the early missionaries to 
the Sandwich Islands, the apostolical, baptized pente- 
costally — also those first sent, when a nation seemed 
born in a day ; a devoted brother and sister Judson, 
of the Burmah Mission, who took their lives in their 
hands, and went forth in the fulness of the Gospel of 
Christ, like Paul, not counting their lives dear unto 



374 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

themselves, so they might finish their course with joy, 
and the ministry they received of the Son. For Christ's 
sake they ^veYe " killed all the day long." They had 
the martyr spirit — and none but those possessing the 
martyr spirit are fit for missionaries to the benighted 
heathen. The " word of Christ dwelt in them richly in 
all wisdom." They testified boldly against the sins of 
the day, popular and unpopular — covetousness, pride, 
the love of applause, idolatry in dress, equipage, etc. 
(See Judson's Letter, " Address to Christian Females 
of America.") They went forth weeping, '' bearing 
precious seed." " They that sow in tears, shall reap 

in joy." 

*' In the strength of their Redeemer, 

For the right their lives they gave ; 
Shrinking not when rack or fagot 
Oped for them a martyr's grave." 

How is it in this nineteenth century, beloved reader? 
Are the missionaries selected and sent forth by our 
missionary boards wholly given up to Christ and His 
work, sanctified through the truth, dead to sin and 
alive to God, through our Lord Jesus ? Do their faces 
shine hohness, as Moses' when he descended from the 
Mount of God ? Can they say, with Paul, " I am cru- 
cified with Christ, nevertheless I live ; yet not I, but 
Christ liveth in me : and the life I now live in the 
flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved 
me, and gave himself for me ?" Gal, ii. 20. 

Alas ! where are they ? Who are they ? There are 
those here and there, even at the present day, walking 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 375 

in white, with garments unspotted. Thanks be to 
God for it ! There are those sent out by our mission- 
ary boards, occasionally, who are not only willing to 
make sacrifices, but who do make them — cut off right 
hands, pluck out right eyes, give up all for Jesus — 
whose souls are alive, on fire for salvation. We have 
witnessed these countenances lighted up with heavenly 
joy, unspeakable, and full of glory. Every thought, 
look, and action, every moving muscle, testified for 
Jesus. They eschewed evil, and hated the garments 
spotted with the flesh. Oh for a host like these ! The 
voice of each true missionary of Jesus is — 



(( ( 



What wilt thou have me do ?' With single eye 
To your Eedeemer's gloiy, work for Him ; 

Illumined every moment from on high, 

Strive in each action God to glorify, 
Nor let one thought of self life's radiance dim." 

But where the nine out of the ten? There were ten 
lepers cleansed, and only one turned back to give 
thanks, glorifying God. Liike, xvii. 15, 16. 

Oh for missionaries like Paul and Barnabas, " full 
of faith and the Holy Ghost !" '* The harvest truly is 
plenteous, but the laborers are few." 3Iatt, ix. 37. 

"A dying world needs laborers everywhere — 
Wide moral wastes in Christian lands abound ; 
In the sparse vale, and in the city full, 
Keglect, and vice, and wretchedness appear, 
Alike in kind to that on heathen shores. 
And doom their victims to an equal grade 
Upon the scale of human destiny." 



376 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

MISSIONARIES NEED HOLY FIRE? 

None more so. Those assigned to foreign or domes- 
tic fields need holy, sanctified hearts — hearts on fire, full 
of faith and the Holy Spirit — must be men and women 
baptized pentecostally, strong in the Lord and in the 
power of His might. What now? Mountains flow 
down as when the melting fire burnetii. Look at 
Xavier, Fenelon, Madame Guion, wherever they went 
salvation streamed ! 

Mark the days of Wesley, the inroads made upon 
Satan's kingdom ! Multitudes through the land bowed 
the knee to King Emmanuel. God crowned the labors 
of these early apostles of Jesus abundantly. Where- 
fore ? They were holy, undefiled, separate from sin 
and sinners, set apart unreservedly for God's service. 
" Holiness to the Lord" was written on their banners, 
gates, and door-posts. Their souls were on fire, blazing 
out fire on fire ! James B. Taylor was a fire, burning 
brightly. Everj^ word from his lips was fire — fire on 
fire. His whole soul was on fire with God's love. 
Wherever and whenever he opened his lips for God, by 
way of reproof, sinners were pricked to the heart, cried 
out, " Lord, save ; we perish." One soul thus on fire 
is a host, will chase a thousand, and two will put ten 
thousand to flight. Why is it that so little is accom- 
plished in missionary fields north, south, east, and 
west at the present time ? Is not the lack of this holy, 
penteQostal fire the chief cause of failure ? 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 377 



TITTLE-TATTLE, AKD THE TITTLE-TATTLERS. 

Tittle-tattle is the height of their ambition. They 
have no rehsh for the solid, the pure, the yirtuous, the 
light of life, the word of God, the power of Gospel 
pnrity and love. The committing of practical portions 
of the holy Scriptures to memory, and conversing upon 
them at table, in the social circle, by the wayside, finds 
no place in their hearts. They turn away from this 
bread of heaven, the food of angels, with apparent dis- 
gust. " Away with sombre looks — away : give us the 
jovial, the small-talk, the tittle-tattle, something to ex- 
cite laughter, like ' the crackling of thorns under a 
pot.' " Of all the expedients to make the heart lean, 
and sear the conscience, cause the Holy Spirit to take 
His flight, the most successful is the little talk and the 
tittle-tattle which, in some charmed circles, is cour- 
teously styled conversation. How human beings can 
live on such meagre fare ; how continue such a famine 
of topics, and on such a short allowance of sense, is a 
great question, if philosophy could only search it out. 
All we know is, that such men and women there are, 
who will go on dwindling in this way from fifteen to four- 
score, and never a hint on their tombstones that thev 
died at last of consumption of the head and marasmus 
of the heart ; the whole universe of God, spreading out 
its splendors and terrors, pleading for their attention, 
and they wonder ^^ where Mrs. Somebody got that 



378 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

divine ribbon to her bonnet ;" the whole world of Utera- 
ture, through its thousand trumps of fame, adjuring 
them to regard its garnered stores of emotion and 
thought, and they think, *' It's high time, if John intends 
to marry Sarah, for him to pop the question." 

Formalists and backsliding professors take no special 
interest in the high and holy exercise of communing 
with God in the closet, and through the medium of the 
blessed Bible, the law and the testimony. David was 
of a different opinion. His whole soul was in it — on 
fire. He meditated upon God's word day and night. 
The midnight hour found him frequently at this blessed 
work of searching the Scriptures, and giving thanks to 
the Giver of all his mercies. 

"What a fearful, lamentable state must professed dis- 
ciples of the Lord Jesus be in, who have no soul-kind- 
lings wdien God's truth is introduced and made the 
subject of conversation. What kind of heaven are they 
looking for, or expecting? The Mohammedan's? 
What renders the state of these tittle-tattlers fearful in 
the extreme is, they seem to flatter themselves they are 
on the way to heaven, when in fact they are on the way 
to hell-fires unquenchable. " By their fruits ye shall 
know them." 

It is truly painful and deeply humiliating to observe 
the character of intercourse which prevails now-a-days 
among those whose professed principles would lead us 
to look for very different practical results. Whife 
marking the intercourse, and hearkening to the conver- 



THE FIBE THAT BURNS. 379 

sation which frequently obtains among professing 
Christians of the present day, one feels disposed to 
ask, Is it possible that the people really believe what 
they profess ? Do they believe they are dead and risen 
with Christ, that their calling is a heavenly one — that 
they are part of Christ's body, crucified with Christ — 
that they are not in the flesh, but in the spirit — strangers 
and pilgrims, waiting for God's Son from heaven ? It 
may be that all these weighty principles are items in the 
creed to which they have given a nominal assent ; but 
it is morally impossible that their hearts can be affected 
by them. How could a heart, really under the power 
of such stupendous truths, take pleasure, or even take 
part in vain, frivolous, empty talk — talk about people 
and their circumstances, with whom and with which 
they have nothing whatever to do ; talk about every 
passing trifle of the day ? Could a heart full of Christ 
be thus occupied? It is as impossible as that noon 
could intermingle with midnight. Yet, professing 
Christians, when they meet in the drawing-room, at the 
dinner-table, and at tea-parties, are, alas ! thus occu- 
pied. 

Look at the Master, our great Exemplar, how did He 
carry Himself toward the men of this world ? Did He 
ever find an object in common with them ? Never. He 
was always feeding upon and filled with one object, and 
of that object He spoke. He ever sought to lead the 
thoughts of men to God. This, beloved reader, should 
be our object. Whenever or wherever we meet men we 



380 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

should lead them to think of Christ ; and if we do not 
find an open door for that, we should not certainly 
suffer ourselves to be carried into the current of their 
thoughts. If we have business to transact with men, 
we must transact it ; but we should not have any fel- 
loAYship with them in their habits of thought or conver- 
sation, because our Master never had : if we diverge 
from His path, we shall soon sink into a low, unsancti- 
fied tone of spirit. We shall be as salt that has lost its 
saltness, and thus be ^' good for nothing." 

We cannot doubt that much of that lack of deep, 
settled, habitual peace, of which so many complain, is 
very justly traceable to the light and trifling habits of 
conversation in which they indulge, to the reading of 
newspapers and hght works. Such things must grieve 
the Hol}^ Spirit : and if the Holy Spirit is grieved, 
Christ cannot be enjoyed; for it is the Spirit alone 
w^ho, by the written word, ministers Christ to the 
soul. If our souls are in a healthy state — spiritually 
alive in God, we shall delight to converse about things 
heavenly ; all is natural and easy, " for out of the abun- 
dance of the heart the mouth speaketh." It is said of 
a certain little insect, that it alwaj^s exhibits the color 
of the leaf on which it feeds. So is it exactly with the 
Christian. It is very easy to tell what he is feeding 
upon. 

But it may be said by some, that "we cannot always 
be talking about Christ." We reply, that just in pro- 
portion as we are led by an ungrieved Spirit wiU all 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 381 

our thoughts and words be occupied about Christ. We, 
if we are children of God, will be occupied with Him 
throughout eternity, and why not now? We are as 
really separated from the world now as we shall be 
then ; but we do not realize it because we do not walk 
in the Spirit. 

Reader, live in the sight of God. This is what 
heaven will be — the eternal presence of God. Do 
nothing you would not like God to see. Say nothing 
you would not like Him to hear. Write nothing you 
would not like Him to read. Go to no place where you 
would not like God to find you. Read no books of 
which you would not like God to say, "Show it me." 
Never spend your time in a way you would not like 
God to say, "What art thou doing?" 

" Whatever dims thy sense of truth, 
Or stains thy purity, 
Though slight as breath of summer air, 
Count it as sin to thee." 



WITHOUT AN ENEMY. 



Heaven help the man who imagines he can dodge 
enemies by trying to please everybody. Wear your 
own colors, in spite of wind and weather, storms or sun- 
shine. It costs the vascillating and irresolute ten 
times the trouble to wind, and shuffle, and twist, that it 
does honest manly independence to stand its gTound. 



382 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 



ALL TALK, AND NO JESUS. 

" A child of words and not of deeds ^ 
Is like a garden full of weeds." 

Talk and laugh, laugh and talk ? Yes, you do ; we 
see it, hear it, and are sick of it. When a friend calls, 
you talk and laugh, laugh and talk. Why not read the 
Bible a little, pray a little, talk about Jesus a little, 
things spiritual, heavenly, divine ? You meet a friend 
in the street, by the wayside, at school, the social 
party. You talk and laugh, laugh and talk, and not a 
word about Jesus, salvation, light, hope, joy unspeak- 
able, glory, glory ! It is all " small-talk," no Jesus 
in it. 

You meet around the table, the fireside, in the sitting- 
room, the parlor. You talk and laugh, laugh and talk, 
and it is all " small-talk" — no Jesus in it. You talk and 
talk, laugh and laugh, giggle and giggle ; but what 
about Jesus, life, soul-life, life that is life, life now, 
Hfe everlasting ? Where, oh where ? 

You travel in the stage-coach, the steamboat, the 
rail-car. You talk and laugh, laugh and talk — anything 
about Jesus, heaven, heaven's glories, glory on glory ? 
Not a word. You talk and laugh, laugh and talk, day 
in and day out, week in and week out ; but where is 
Jesus, the light, the life, the hope of glory ? It is all 
" small-talk," and no Jesus in it. 

Church folks ? Certainly. You attend the house of 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 383 

God, meetings for prayer and praise. On the way, 
going and coming, you talk and laugh, laugh and talk ; 
but where is Jesus, the Lamb slain, the fairest among 
ten thousand, the one altogether lovely ? 

" Jesus, the vision of tliy face 
Hath overpoweiing chaims." 

The moment the Gospel sound from the sacred desk 
is hushed, the closing prayer offered — what now ? 
Jesus ? Nay ; a gleeful time, the merry confab, a 
lively chit-chat. You talk and laugh, laugh and talk ; 
but no Jesus in it. It's all " small-talk" — very small. 

Disciples? Oh yes, you call yourselves disciples, 
church-members, men and women. Some of you are 
ministers, ministers' wives, sons, and daughters, who 
talk and laugh, laugh and talk ; but where is Jesus ? 
Is Jesus dead, heaven closed, the day of grace, salva- 
tion, light, and glory — and the watchword now, " eat, 
drink, make merry, for to-morrow we die ?" If Jesus 
was alive in the soul — soul-kindling, the holy emotion, 
life-giving, the baptismal power, the tongue of fire — 
w^ould not these blessed things come out in spite of 
you? 

As the heart, so the tongue. If Jesus was in you 
the hope of glory, would not Jesus come out of you — 
would not your lips be opened wide for Him involun- 
tarily — would you not be constrained to speak of Jesus, 
know nothing save Jesus and Him crucified ? Would 
you not say, like Elihu, "I am full of matter; the 
spirit within me constraineth me. Behold, my belly is 



384 THE SWOBD THAT CUTS : 

as wine which hath no vent ; it is ready to burst, like 
new bottles. I will speak, that I may be refreshed?" 
Job, xxxii. 18-20. Exclaim with the poet, outburst- 

" Jesus, all the day long, 
Is my joy and my song ?'' 

How could you help it — how can you now ? 

" No mortal can with Him compare 
Among the sons of men ; 
Fairer is He than all the fair 
That fill the heavenly train." 

" If Christ be in you, the body is dead because of 
sin ; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness." 
" Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith ; 
prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, 
how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be repro- 
bates ?" 2 Cor. xiii. 5. " A wholesome tongue is a 
tree of life ; but perverseness therein is a breach in the 
spirit." Prov. xv. 4. " But I say unto you, that every 
idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account 
thereof in the day of judgment." 3Iatt, xii. 36. 

All talk that is vain, empty, or unprofitable, or which 
does not tend to instruct or edify, is idle. " If any 
man among you seemeth to be religious, and bridleth 
not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's 
religion is vain." James^ i. 26. 



" Whoso keepeth his m.Quth and his tongue, keepeth 
his soul from troubles." Prov, xxi. 23. 



THE FIBE THAT BURNS. 



385 




THE PTKAMIDS OF EGYPT. 

What are they? Some writers suppose they were 
erected by the Israelites, while -under the yoke of 
Pharaoh. ' Josephus says that the Hebrews, during 
their hard labor in Egypt, were made to cut canals, 
raise dykes, erect pyramids, etc. Other writ rs take a 
different view of the subject. No matter— here they 
are, a wonder of wonders! We see what good folks 
wui do, influenced by the Holy Scriptures ; and what 
bad folks will do, blinded by the god of this world. 
God made man upright ; but they have sought out 
many wicked inventions. 

17 



386 THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



LAUGH AT THIS; LAUGH AT THAT. 

*' A pleasant smile for every face, 
Oh, 'tis a blessed thing ; 
It will the lines of care erase. 
And spots of beauty bring." 

Laugh ? Yes, you may : it is right to laugli — to 
laugh heartily, with all the heart, soul, and hfe. There 
is no harm in the exercise of laughing. The Lord would 
never bestow the faculty for laughing were it sinful to 
laugh. To laugh in the spirit is scriptural. We 
have authority for laughing from the highest source. 
It is no part of Christianity to make sad the counte- 
nance, disfiguring the face, which should be sunny under 
the sunshine of a pure conscience — of a loving God. 

To laugh, in the Bible sense of the term, is not only 
commendable and praiseworthy, but healthful to spirit, 
soul, and body — invigorating, lifegiving. We are to 
laugh to the glory of God as truly and heartily as we 
are to eat, drink, sleep, or whatever we do. If the 
ploughing of the wicked is sin, is not their laugh also ? 
The apostle tells us, " Whatsoever ye do, in word or in 
deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving 
thanks unto God and the Father by Him." Col. iii. 17. 

There are various kinds of laughing, as there are 
various kinds of talking. There is the vain laugh, the 
silly laugh, the foolish, nonsensical laugh, common to 
the world — to persons of weak minds, of corrupt, un- 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 387 

sanctified hearts. In this kind of laughter " the heart 
is sorrowful, and the end of that mirth is heaviness." 
Prov, xiv. 13. 

Individuals given to light and frivolous reading are 
almost sure to be tinctured with this foolish, nonsensi- 
cal laughter ; they laugh at mere trifles — at their own 
foUies and mistakes, and the follies and mistakes of 
others. They often laugh without knowing what they 
are laughing at, or laugh because they see and hear 
others laugh. 

It is fashionable to laugh, and to laugh at trifles, or 
things not worth laughing at. When a fashion is once 
introduced, no matter how absurd, foolish, ridiculous, 
or soul-destroying, it will be followed, more or less, by 
the world and the Church. Is it fashionable to read 
nonsensical things, talk nonsensical things, and laugh 
at nonsensical things ? These fashions are followed by 
professors and non-professors. Fashion rules the 
world and curses the world. What wicked fashion will 
the devil introduce next ? 

" Trifle not ; for from the fulness 

Of the heart the mouth doth speak, 
And from clear and rock-bound fountains 
Never will foul waters break." 

Foolish talking and jesting, and foolish laughing, go 
hand in hand with foolish reading, the light, insipid, 
ephemeral publications of the day. This kind of 
laughing is grating to the ear, heart-sickening and cor- 
rupting. 



388 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

Again, there is a holy laugh, a laugh of repentance, 
faith, hope, joy — ^joy unspeakable and full of glory. 
Thi^ holy laughter, proceeding from a pure heart, a 
heart of joyfulness in God, is frequently alluded to in 
the Scriptures. Abraham laughed at the prospect of a 
son in his old age — fell on his face and laughed. Gen, 
xvii. 17. "When the Lord turned the captivity of 
Zion .... then our mouth was filled with laughter, 
and our tongue with singing." Psalm cxxvi. 1, 2. 
"Blessed are ye that weep now, for ye shall laugh." 
Luke^ vi. 21. 

Persons filled with faith and the Holy Spirit are fre- 
quently constrained to laugh — give vent to their joyful 
emotions in laughter. This holy laughter is not only 
commendable, but blessed in its effects ; it is blessed 
to the one who laughs thus joyfully, and hkewise to 
those who hear it. This laughing that originates from 
the Holy Spirit's operations on the soul exhilarates— 
carries a sanctifying thrill of ecstatic joy to those w^ho 
love the truth, and often strikes home conviction power- 
fully to the hearts of unbelievers. 

With this kind of laughing God is well pleased ; it is 
unselfish, benevolent, and redounds to His glory. Oh 
for a host of such laughers — the world over ! 

Again, there is a cheerful laugh or smile playing 
upon the lips of the upright in heart — a constant, sweet, 
heavenly complacency beaming forth upon the coun- 
tenances of the pure in thought and life, like the dis- 
tilling dew^s of heaven, or the rain upon the mown 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 389 

grass. Blessed souls, laugh on — keep laughing — laugh 
forever ; this kind of laughing is a perpetual feast. 

" Be hopeful, cheerful — faith will bring 

A living joy to thee, 
And make thy life a hymn of praise, 

From doubt and murmurs free ; 
Whilst like the sunbeam thou wilt bless, 
And bring to others happiness." 

We see, then, clearly how a man's true character 
may be discerned by his laughing, as readily as by his 
speaking. The moment you hear a person laugh, and 
know what he is laughing at, you form an opinion 
directly of the state of his heart and life. 

A man richly imbued with heayenly wisdom, and a 
soul on fire for the salvation of perishing souls, with 
the solemnities of eternity in view, never laughs at 
trifles. It is better to hear the rebukes of the wise 
than for a man to hear the song of fools. " For, as the 
crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of 
the fool." Ecdes, vii. 6. " The heart of the wise is in 
the house of mourning ; but the heart of fools is in the 
house of mirth." Ecdes. vii. 4. 



There are certain truths unpalatable to the carnal 
mind, to cold, formal, worldly-minded, backslidden 
professors. They will not endure sound doctrine, but 
'^heap to themselves teachers having itching ears." 
Against these we must set our faces like a flint, regard- 
less of consequences. 



390 THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



THE TONGUE, AND TONGUE-TAMING. 

I 

" If wisdom's ways yon wisely seek, 

Five things observe with care : 
To whom you speak, of whom you speak, 
And liow^ and wlien^ and whereP 

Keader, do you think befote you speak ? Better do 
it; one slip of the tongue, unguarded, may do great 
mischief. 

Look up — be on the watch-tower. The Psalmist 
prayed earnestly for a watch to be placed at the door 
of his lips. He promised the Lord also that he would 
bridle his tongue, especially in the presence of the 
wicked or ungodly. '' The tongue of the wise useth 
knowledge aright." "A wholesome tongue is a tree of 
life." "The lips of the wise disperse knowledge." 
" The heart of the righteous studieth to answer ; but 
the mouth of the wdcked poureth out evil things." 
Prov. XV. 28. " Be more ready to hear," says Solomon, 
"than to give the sacrifice of fools." "Be not rash 
with thy mouth, and let not thy heart be hasty to utter 
anything before God, for God is in heaven and thou 
upon earth : therefore let thy words be few." " A fool's 
voice is known by a multitude of words." 

James says : " If a man offend not in word, the same 
is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body." 

These passages from inspiration of God are appli- 
cable both to prayer and conversation. 



THE FIBE THAT BUBNS, 391 

Martin Luther, the great reformer, once said, writing 
on prayer : " "When thou prayest," said he, " let thy 
words be few, but thy thoughts and feelings many and 
deep. The less thou speakest, the better thy prayers. 
Few words and much thought is a Christian frame. 
Many words and little thought is heathenish." Madame 
Guion, one of the most godly women of her age, dwelt 
much on holy silence as an important Christian grace. 

That little unruly member, the tongue, does all the 
mischief in the house and out of it — in the Church and 
in the world. " It is a fire — a world of iniquity : so is 
the tongue among our members, that it defileth the 
whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature ; 
and it is set on fire of hell." James, iii. 6. 

" Words are mighty, words are living — 

Serpents with their venomous stings, 
Or bright angels crowding round us 

With heaven's light upon their wings. 
Eveiy word has its own spirit, 

True or false, that never dies ; 
Every word man's lips have uttered 

Echoes ever in God's skies." 

What the cure ? by whom the remedy ? how can this 
little unruly member, full of deadly poison, be tamed ? 
Can man tame it ? Never. God declares it. Every- 
thing else almost has been tamed by man — beasts, 
birds, serpents, and things in the sea — but when and 
where was it known that a mere human being ever 
tamed his own tongue, or the tongue of others — brought 
it into sweet subjection to the law of love ? Such a 



392 THE SWOllD THAT CUTS : 

thing never was — never will be. Still there is hope — 
blessed hope, joyful — help is laid upon One mighty to 
save, even to the uttermost. Glory to God in the high- 
est ! there is One who can, not only tame this mischief- 
maker, but has tamed multitudes innumerable now in 
heaven, now on earth! Yes, beloved, difficult a matter 
as it is to tame the tongue, it can be tamed — made to 
play harmoniously, lovingly, all the time, day in and 
day out. Do you inquire how this mystery is solved ? 
by v/hom? Have you not been told over and over, 
there is one standing among you, even Jesus ? Jesus 
can do it ; all power is given to Him in heaven and on 
earth. When on earth personally he did it. Who ever 
had a sweeter or more heavenly tongue than Mary 
Magdalene after the seven devils were cast out of her ? 
John likewise, who, on one occasion, desired to call 
fire from heaven on the Samaritans and consume them 
(LiiJce, ix. 54), had his tongue tamed afterward. Never 
was there a more loving, joyful, harmless, blessed 
tongue than John's after he received the baptismal 
touch — Pentecostal — the tongue of Jlre, the sealing, 
sanctifying influence of the Holy Spirit. His tongue 
was tamed completely, and forever, to music seraphic ! 
Ever after he blessed God and men — there was no dis- 
crepancy, out of the same mouth proceeded blessing 
and not cursing. The fountain was now purified, and 
of course the streams were pure. ''Doth a fountain 
send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter?" 
James, iii. 11. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 393 

This tongue-taming was one chief object of Christ's 
mission to this world of sin. 

No one ever applied to Jesiis earnestly and in good 
faith for the taming of his tongue that was disap- 
pointed. The invitation was open and free to all, and is 
now. There is virtue sufScient in Jesus's atoning sacri- 
fice to tame all the mischief-makers or unruly members 
in the w^orld, even though every one is " set on fire of 
hell !" And if any refuse to have their tongues tamed 
the fault is their own — the consequences will rest upon 
their own heads. 

"We know of a goodly number, even now, in this nine- 
teenth century, who have had their tongues tamed in 
the same W8.y — viz., going to Jesus, placing themselves 
directly under His tuition, submitting their cases en- 
tirely to His sovereign skill, and the thing was done, 
and ivell done. Now their tongues move in God's ser- 
vice, sweetly, harmoniously, joyfully. " Praise the 
Lord !" 

Beloved reader, have you applied to Jesus to have 
your tongue tamed— made to move in love, in strains 
sweeter than angels use ? Jesus is just as able, just as 
willing to tame tongues now as ever, His precious blood 
is just as efficacious. 

Some very good persons tell us they have laid all on 
the altar Christ Jesus — made a complete surrender, 
brought all the tithes into the storehouse, when in ^fact 
their lips or tongues are their own, to use as they 
please. 

17^ 



391 



THE SWOIiD THAT CUTS 




WINTER, WINTER! WHAT A LESSON! 

Young friends and old friends, do you consider how 
many ways God speaks — gives line upon line ? Nature 
speaks, the Bible, the word of grace. The heavens de- 
clare the glory of God, the varied seasons — summer and 
winter, spring and autumn. The spring season pic- 
tures youth, blooming life ; winter is emblematical of 
old age, declining years, tottering on the grave's brink. 

" We take no note of time 
But from its loss : to give it then a tongue 
Is wise in man." 

How fleetly the passing moments glide away ! How 
soon are life's golden dreams and bright visions of 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 395 

worldly bliss forever flown! Time, ever-rolling time, 
^vrites tlie impress of decay everywhere, and upon 
everything we behold in this beautiful world of ours. 
There is nothing of earthly beauty or of earthly gran- 
deur that can bid defiance to the storms of time, or 
nothing too sacred or holy to elude the destruction of 

its fatal blast ! 

" I saw liiui grasp the oak — 
It fell ; tlie tower — it crumbled ; and the stone, 
The sculptured monument, that marked the grave 
Of fallen greatness, ceased its pompous strains 
As Time came by." 

Flowers, that fill the ambient air with sweet odors 
and ambrosial incense, bloom, fade, die! Our earth, 
at one season of the year, is clad in her beautiful dress 
of living green ; and the bright rays of a vernal sun 
enrich, expand, and beautify every scene in creation. 
The soft, warm air is filled with music, sunshine, and 
perfume, and all nature shines out in unrivalled splen- 
dor and loveliness. But how soon does the withering 
breath of a few revolving months rob the fields of their 
blooming verdure and beauty, the forests and trees of 
their foliage and drapery, and cause the green-robed 
earth ^' to lay her glory by" till the time shall again 
come for the reproduction of flowers, plants, and herbs 
upon the face of nature ! Change and decay are im- 
pressed upon all things earthly. The eye lingers not 
upon an object, hov/ever beautiful and attractive now, 
which the corroding finger of time shall not one day 
mar or efface ! 



396 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

But Time does more. It invades a holier sanctuary, 
and introduces man to a brighter destiny and a happier 
cHmate beyond the grave. Piety and vii'tue may well 
consent to the blight and ruin of time, since it leads to 
their coronation amid the thrones and palaces of eter- 
nity ! The changeless and the eternal of heaven will 
amply compensate for the changeful and evanescent of 
earth. Time flies ; but with it the pure and holy are 
on the wing to brighter skies and nobler joys ! Beau- 
tiful, but to every earnest thoughtful heart true as 
beautiful, are the lines of the poet : 

" Roses bloom, and then they wither ; 
Cheeks ai'e bright, then fiide and die ; 
Shapes of light are wafted hither, 
Then, like visions, hurry by." 



STANDING FOR THE TRUTH? 

In silver slippers, can you ?— without being clothed 
with the panoply of heaven, armed with God's com- 
plete armor ?— unless filled with the Holy Spirit? 
Who ever did ? 

*' Come out," is the watchword. " Come out and be 
separate ; touch not the unclean thing, have no fellow- 
ship with the unfruitful Avorks of darkness, but rather 
reprove them." Profess to stand for Jesus, and yet 
not rebuke sin in high places and in low — sins of omis- 
sion and commission ? 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 397 



SHOW YOUR COLORS— HANG OUT YOUR SIGN 1 

" Stand up for Jesus ! all who lead His host ! 
Crowned with the splendors of the Holy Ghost ! 
Shrink from no foe, to no temptation yield, 
Urge on the triumphs of this glorious field — 
Stand up for Jesus." 

Reader, are you for Christ, or for the world and 
Belial ? Do you walk as the world walks, talk as the 
world talks, dress, eat, drink, rise up, lie down, go out, 
come in, make merry as the world does ? Your sign 
is out — " Belial" — read and known of all men. " By 
their fruits ye shall know them." " No man can serve 
two masters." 

Are you for Jesus ? Show your colors, hang out 
your sign — " love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, 
goodness, faith, meekness, temperance." Do as Jesus 
did, walk in his steps, go about doing good as he did ; 
take up your cross and deny yourself, resist imto 
blood, striving against sin, as he did. 

When you walk, let it be said of you, " There goes a 
Christian." " Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and 
make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts 
thereof." Bom. xiii. 14 

Hoist your colors, and let your watchword be known. 
" Our conversation is in heaven, from whence we look 
for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ." Pldl. iii. 20. 

Hang out your sign, unfold your colors, and let 
the record on your action be legible. Here we have 



398 THE SWORD THAT CUTS I ' 

no continuing city, but we seek one to come. Eeh. 

xiii. 14. 

" Let us remember how 
The Holy One was doing good to all.'^ 

Are you a temperance man, a teetotaler ? Show it 
out, speak it out, live it out. Is your grocery temper- 
ance — your hotel ? Is everything intoxicating and poi- 
sonous excluded forever — rum and tobacco ? Hang 
out your sign, show your colors. 

" You have heard of the snake in the grass, 
Of the viper concealed in the grass ; 

But now you must know 

Man's deadliest foe 
Is a snake of a different class ! 
'Tis the viper that lurks in the glass." 

Are you a friend to the poor, the despised, the per- 
secuted? Manifest it in the stage-coach, the car, the 
steamboat, everywJiere. " Inasmuch as ye have done 
it to one of the least of these my brethren, ye have 
done it unto me." Matt. xxv. 40. * 

" Blessed is he that considereth the poor ; the Lord 
will deliver him in time of trouble." 

Are you travelling in stages, steamboats, rail-cars ? 
Show your colors, speak a word for your Master. Be 
sure to go prepared with a large supply of the *' leaves 
for the healir^g of the nations ;" scatter the good seed. 

^' Cast thy bread upon the waters, 
Sow in faith the little seed ; 
Be of great results expectant, 
For the harvest is decreed." 

Forget not these silent messengers of truth in your 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 399 

visitations, your journeyings by sea and by land. Go 
armed ; preach by word, by life, by letter, by deed."^ 
Show your colors. 

Are you in the sanctuary, in meetings for prayer, 
praise, and testimony ? Show your colors, witness for 
Jesus ; open your mouth wide, and God will fill it. " Be 
ready always to give an answer to every man that ask- 
eth you a reason of the hope that is in you, with meek- 
ness and fear." 1 Pet, iii. 15. Let the same mind be 
in you that was in Christ — your whole exterior, every 
look, thought, word, moving muscle tell for Jesus. 

" Lift up anew thy standard high, 
Ever be this thy battle-cry — 
' For Christ to hve and die.' " 

Again, are you at watering-places, places of summer 
resort? Be sure to hang out your sign, show your 
colors, speak for your Master. 

" Ashamed of Jesus ! that dear friend, 

On whom my hopes of heaven depend ? 
No ! When I blush, be this my shame, 
That I no more revere His name." 

" "Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my 
words, of him shall the Son of Man be ashamed when 



* Travel ? Not a step, by sea or by land, without being armed. 
What, venture into an enemy's countiy unequipped, exposed to spir- 
itual foes on the right, on the left, behind and before ? Go armed 
with these leaves of salvation, fill your pockets, your satchels, your 
ti-unks with silent messengers of truth, wnth barbed arrows of re- 
proof Load and fire ! load and flre I 



400 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

lie shall come in his own glory, and in his Father's, 
and of the holy angels." Luke, ix. 26. 

Daniel showed his colors, all safe ! Shadrach, Me- 
shach, and Abednego showed their colors, and came off 
glorious ! 

Dudley Tyng preached many yaluable sermons, but 
this one short sermon of four words, " Stand up for Je- 
sus," will accomplish more than all others he preached 
during his life. He showed his colors. He honored 
God, and God honored him. He dared to be singular 
in the cause of God and the oppressed. The name of 
this faithful, outspoken, devoted servant of God will be 
held in everlasting remembrance, while the unfaithful, 
and those that prophesy falsely, will be forgotten, or 
be remembered only with shame and disgrace. 

" Them that honor me I will honor ; and they that 
despise me shall be lightly esteemed." 

" Stand up for Jesus ! Ye of every name, 
All one in prayer, and with praise aflame, 
Forget the sad estrangements of the past, 
With one consent in love and peace at last — 
Stand up for Jesus !'' 



" For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ : 
for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one 
that beheveth ; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. 
For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from 
faith to faith : as it is written. The just shall live by 
faith." iiom. i. 16, 17. 



THE FIKE THAT BURNS. 401 

TREADMILL FOLKS— A LINE TO A FRIEND. 

You won't let us do you good. " Won't let you do 
us good?" No, friend, you won't. We have tried it 
over and over ; turned this way and that way, to see if 
it were possible to squeeze in salvation somehow. And 
after exhausting our time, talents, patience, and long- 
suffering, we are satisfied that you are not disposed to 
receive the truth in the love of it ; you choose to have 
your own way — tread on, treadmill fashion, as you 
have done. When we tell you Satan is creeping into 
your borders stealthily in the form of hght &othy 
pubHcations, to your utter ruin, you close your eyes 
and ears — sleep on, fold your hands and sleep. When 
we tell you that your " httle ones" are growing up in- 
fidels, and these little infidels baptized will soon be big 
infidels, full grown — and what then ? One infidel makes 
other infidels. " One sinner destroyeth much good." 
When we tell you to obey God in household duty — train 
your children exchtsively Godward from ttie start, that 
they may be Godward all the way and foi^ever, you say, 
by words and deeds, "Not yet, but by-and-by; we 
send our children to Sunday-school, they also attend 
family prayers and listen to catechisms, and by-and-by, 
when old enough, we hope they will become Chris- 
tians !" By this delay you pervert God's good counsel 
and positive requisitions ; and thus we fear your off- 
spring go down to hell with a he in your mouth ! God 
says ''now/' you say "by-and-by, not yet." Again, 



402 THE SWORD THAT CUTS I 

"we tell you to be radical, biblically so, as God is radical, 
as the holy prophets and apostles. Storm the fort of 
Satan at once ; slay on the right and on the left ; obey 
God in " declaring all the words of this life" fearlessly, 
come life come death, leaving the consequences of this 
fire, flint, and hammer work with God exclusively. 
But you say, " Nay, deal gently with sin ; touch lightly, 
softly this popular iniquity and that popular iniquity ; 
compromise a little here, a little there ; get the heart 
right, and all will be right." Thus you refuse to con- 
demn sin as God does, to cry aloud and spare not. 
Your charity covereth not only a multitude of sins, but 
sins of the deepest dye — sins that cause angels to weep 
and all hell to rejoice ! It is honey here and honey 
there, while Satan and wicked men are doing a work of 
death and damnation ! Now, friend, what is the use in 
trying to do you good and the people over which you 
preside ? Your habits of healing slightly, daubing Avith 
i-ntempered mortar, are confirmed, stereotyped, rooted 
and grounded — where is hope ? Alas ! hope deferred 
maketh the heart sick. 

In all probability you will treadmill on as you have 
been thus far treadmilling. Preach ? Oh yes, you can 
preach here, there, anywhere, without let or hindrance ; 
no one will hurt, molest, or oppose you. Let Satan 
alone and sinners alone in their sins, backsliders and 
formahsts, and who will harm you ? 

Friend, the judgment-day is near — look out. Pray 
for you and yours ? What's the use, while you disobey, 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 403 

stiffneckedly ? Pray for you ? Yes, we will, that God 
may open your bUnd eyes, unstop your deaf ears, ere 
you sink to rise no more ! God forbid we should cease 
to beseech the Lord to have mercy on you. TVTiile 
there is life there is hope for the wickedest. ^ 

" While the lamp holds out to burn, 
The vilest sinner may return." 

Once more, we told you furthermore to give up your 
picnic religion, your nonsense, your trifling with serious 
things, sitting down to eat and rising up to play. But 
you refused; "Folly is yours, and after folly you will 
go." Are you, in very deed, honest when you ask 
Christians to pray for you ? Look out, for God deals 
terribly with hypocrites ! ^ 

Tou make your boast of the great number of con- 
verts you are making and have made. And what are 
these converts ? to what are they converted ? to a pure 
Gospel — a whole Gospel? Do they stand the fire? 
Sickly preaching makes sickly converts. No fruit is 
brought to perfection. When the " sun is up they are 
scorched, and because they have no root they wither 
away." 

Persecute you? No, brother, no danger at all of 
your being persecuted. Preach and write as you do 
now forever and forever, no one will disturb or harm 
you. Tou are saihng on very quietly and smoothly, 
and will doubtless continue to do so, without a ripple 
or dashing wave of molestation. 



404 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 



FEAR THE CONSEQUENCES? 

Consequences, indeed ! "What have you to do with 
consequences, friend ? Go forivard ; do your duty in 
the fear and wisdom of God, and let consequences take 
care of themselves, or rather let God take care of them. 
God's true and faithful servants have nothing to do 
with consequences in the path of duty, in their public 
or private ministrations, in rebuking sin, m standing 
boldly for Jesus. This fearing consequences is the 
ruin of the Church, our institutions of benevolence, our 
nation ! It is ruin, politically and religiously — one 
special cause of all the temporizing, the doctrine of 
expediency, compromising with sin and Satan, wicked 
men and devils ! This fearing consequences and not 
obeying God has brought our nation to what she is — on 
the verge of ruin, desolation, and damnation ; brought 
leanness and spiritual death into the Church, the edi- 
torship, the souls of millions ! 

It is wicked, God dishonoring unbelief, bowing the 
knee to public opinion. It is a man-fearing, time- 
serving spirit, the hateful, pharisaical, damning sin, 
which God hates and which He will blow upon. " Yea? 
they shall not be planted ; yea, they shall not be sown ; 
yea, their stock shall not take root in the earth ; and 
He shall also blow upon them and they shall mther, 
and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble." 
Isa. xl. 24. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 405 

Eeader, how is it with you ? Are you obeying God — 
taking Him at His word, going forward boldly in de- 
claring God's full counsel, leaving the consequences 
with Him who says, " I Avill never leave thee nor for- 
sake thee?" 

Suppose Elijah had feared consequences when he 
was commanded to meet the enraged and wicked Ahab 
— ^look him in the face ? What if Daniel had looked at 
consequences when the lions' den was opened wide to 
receive him ? the three men cast into the fiery furnace 
heated seven ''times hotter than was wont?" 

" Fear not them who kill the body, but are not able 
to kill the soul ; but rather fear Him who is able to de- 
stroy both soul and body in hell." 3Iatt. x. 28. 



DRESS. 

The wearing of gay or costly apparel naturally tends 
to breed and increase vanity. By vanity I mean the 
love and desire of being admired and praised. Every 
one of you that is fond of dress has a witness of this in 
your own bosom. Whether you will confess this before 
man or not, you are convicted of it before God. You 
know in your hearts, it is with a view to be admired 
that you thus adorn yourselves ; and that you would 
not be at the pains were none to see you but God and 
His holy angels. Now the more you indulge this fool- 
ish design the more it grows upon you. Oh, stop ! Aim 
at pleasing God alone, and all these ornaments will drop. 



406 THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



FREE CHURCHES, FREE SEATS. 

" My hrethren^ ham not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christy the Lord 
of glory ^ with respect of persons ^ — James ^ ii. 1. 

The question of free churclies derives its importance 
from its influence upon the purity and the progress of 
Christianity. It has a greater bearing upon both than 
many imagine. The world will never become converted 
to Christ, so long as the churches are conducted upon 
the exclusive system. 

The pew-system generally prevails among all denom- 
inations. This system is wrong in principle, evil in its 
tendency. It is a corruption of Christianity. 

Free churches are essential to reach the masses. 

The provisions of the Gospel are for all. The " glad 
tidings" must be proclaimed to every individual of the 
human race. God sends the true light to illuminate 
and melt every heart. It visits the palace and the 
dungeon, saluting the king and the captive. The civil- 
ized and the savage, bond and free, black and white, 
the ignorant and the learned are freely offered the great 
salvation. 

But for ivhose henefit are special efforts to he put forth ? 

"Who must be particularly cared for? Jesus settles 
this question. " The blind receive their sight and the 
lame walk, the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, 
the dead are raised up ;" and as if all this would be in- 
sufficient to satisfy John of the validity of His claims. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 407 

He adds, '' and the poor have the Gospel preached to 
them." This was the crowning proof that He was the 
One that should come. 

In this respect the Church must follow in the foot- 
steps of Jesus. She must see to it, that the Gospel is 
preached to the poor. 

Thus the duty of preaching the Gospel to the poor i 5 
enjoined by the plainest precepts and examples. 

If the Gospel is to be preached to the poor, then it 
follows, as a necessary consequence, that all the ar- 
rangements for preaching the Gospel should be so 
made as to secure this object. 

The requirement of the Gospel is not met by setting 
apart a certain number of free seats for those who are 
too poor or too indifferent to rent or purchase. 

If it be said that seats would be freely giyen to those 
who are unable to pay for them, we answer, this does 
not meet the case. But few are willing, so long as 
they are able to appear at church, to be publicly 
treated as paupers. Neither is it true, as is sometimes 
assumed, that those who are too poor or too indifferent 
to religion to pay for a seat in the house of God, would 
not be likely to be benefited by its ordinances. 

The pew-system, wherever it prevails, not only keeps 
the masses from attending church, but ahenates them, 
in a great degTee, from Christianity itself. They look 
upon it as an institution for the genteel and the fash- 
ionable, and upon Christians as a proud and exclusive 
class. 



408 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

We know it is the custom in many pewed chapels to 
leave certain seats free for the accommodation of such 
as cannot buy or rent ; but it seems to answer almost 
no purpose, except to give offence. Who is willing 
thus publicly to advertise his poverty or misfortune, 
his want of ability or inclination to afford himself a 
place in church, by taking "the poor-seats?" Such 
humility is not to be expected in those who need the 
instruction of the Gospel most. Besides, to require it 
is not only uncharitable and unwise, but unscriptural. 
Such conduct in professed Christians meets with a 
merited rebuke in the following language of St. James : 

'' My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus 
Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. For 
if there come unto j^our assembly a man with a gold 
ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor 
man in vile raiment ; and ye have respect to him that 
weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him. Sit thou 
here in a good place ; and say to the poor, Stand thou 
there, or set here under my footstool ; are ye not then 
partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil 
thoughts? Hearken, my beloved brethren, hath not 
God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and 
heirs of the Kingdom which he hath promised to them 
that love him ? But ye have despised the poor." 

How long shall we declare that the Gospel is to be 
the redemption of all, that the good tidings of great 
joy shall be to all people, and then stall up the very 
place where that Gospel is dispensed, the very place 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 409 

where those good tidings are proclaimed, as closely 
and exclusively as if salvation were the prerogative of 
moneyed men? How long will it take to convert 
Boston, New York, and Baltimore at this rate ? 

We have heard of churches where pews are locked, 
and only their owners suffered to enter them. May 
they stay locked to all Christian men ! These pew-own- 
ers expect to get into heaven through a private entrance. 

Christianity cannot be broken into grades by earthly 
distinction, without detriment. At the feast of the 
Passover, the master and slave alike partook ; is Chris- 
tianity more exclusive than Judaism ? Is the salvation 
of the world a less powerful solvent than the salvation 
of the first-born of the families of Israel ? If Christ 
could have washed the feet of His disciples, cannot 
those disciples tolerate each others' presence ? 

Friends of Jesus, we call upon you to take this mat- 
ter into serious consideration. The Gospel is commit- 
ted to your trust. Your business is to save souls : the 
church-edifice is your workshop. Do not, we beseech 
you, convert it into a show-room, to display, not the 
graces of Christians, but the vain fashions of the 
world.^ 



* Rev. James A. Bolles, pastor of the Churcli of the Advent (Epis- 
copal), in Boston, preached a sermon recentl}^ in favor of free 
chm-ches as against pewed establishments. The pew-system : 1. 
Shuts out Lazarus and lets Dives in. 2. Is at war with the universal 
invitations of the Gospel. 3. Makes the house of God a house of 
merchandise. 4. It is an anomaly unsanctioned by nature, Scripture, 
or primitive antiquity, and unknown till the sixteenth century. 



410 THE SWORD THAT CUTS! 



SINGING WITH GRACE A DUTY. 

The command of God to sing praises is equally posi- 
tive with that of prayer or supplication. 

*' Sing unto the Lord, all ye lands ; sing praises, sing 
unto Him, sing psalms unto Him." *' Sing unto the 
Lord a new song, and His praise in the congregation 
of the saints." "Let everything that hath breath 
praise the Lord." 

Have we any more right to sing hy proxy (by the 
mouth of sinners), than to pray by proxy? Why not 
employ some one of fluent speech to do our pray- 
ing, while we look on and gaze with wonder at his mar- 
vellous gifts ! Will our souls be benefited ! Is God 
well pleased ! 

Sing with grace in your hearts — when? where ? Here 
are four or five persons seated in the choir, for what ? 
To praise God for some five hundred or two thousand ? 

And who are these four songsters in the choir to lead 
the worship in God's house for the whole audience? 
Humble, meek, devoted followers of Christ, or the gay, 
proud, fashionable, self-conceited? Some of our city 
churches sacrifice to pride one, two, or three thousand 
dollars of God's money annually, to sustain this opera- 
business. Is it a wonder God frowns upon this popery, 
sends leanness or spiritual death into their souls ? 

Says the " Christian Examiner :" "A fashionable 
quartette choir costs from $1,000 to $5,000 a year. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 411 

Many of these performers who lead the worship of God 
on Sunday are regularly engaged in the places of 
amusement in and about the city. Few of them are 
professors of religion, and few of them are professoi's 
of propriety. They pay little attention to the services 
or to the decorum of the house of God. They have 
nothing to do with the prayers, the reading of God'a 
word, or with the preaching. The part they bear in 
devotion they propose to do artistically, according to 
contract, and nothing more. It is the custom of some 
costly choirs, during the sermon, to retire to an ante- 
room and enjoy themselves, while the 'performer^ ag 
they regard him at the other end of the house, takes 
his part. An artist was secured, took her place in the 
quartette choir, and charmed the audience by her vo- 
calization. More than all, she charmed the people by 
her modest and even diffident bearing. She had never 
sung in a choir before, it was said, and the sympathetic 
ladies pitied her embarrassment. A couple of Sundays 
revealed the fact that this modest damsel had been 
connected the whole season with Niblo's troupe, with 
whom she had been performing the Black Crook." 

Choir worship, as a general thing, is not spiritual 
worship ; how can it be, when those composing our 
choirs are not spiritual worshippers, but the gay, the 
thoughtless, the worldly-minded, the fashionable ? Is 
it meet to take the children's bread and cast it to dogs ? 
(See Matt xxv. 26.) 

The artistic performance of a beautiful piece of muaic 



il2 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

will produce feeling ; is it therefore devotional feeling 
— the music or melody in the heart ? The opera of a 
French troupe will excite feeling, but is this feeling a 
devotional feehng? "Be not deceived, God is not 
mocked." " My son, give me thy heart." 

" That which is highly esteemed among men is abom- 
ination in the sight of God." " If singing come not 
from the heart," says Calvin, " it is worth nothing, and 
can only awaken God's wrath." 

Churches of Jesus Christ ! come back to first prin- 
ciples — first practices — " your first love." " Remember 
how you (then) heard and received, and hold fast, and 
repent." Then you served the Lord — served Him in 
fervency of spirit. Then you prayed, you sang Hia 
sounding praise, not by proxy, but you yourselves ; and 
served, and sang, and prayed with a ^^ fervent spirit.'' 
Do again your " first works." Return to your first 
love, first simphcity, first humility, honesty, zeal, and 
fervency in the service of God ; and he, the Lord, will 
return and dwell among you, and bless you, and make 
you a blessing to untold multitudes. 

Away, aivay, with show and parade — with cold, stiff 
forms and formalism, in the service of God! Such 
were not to be foimd in the Church in her first and 
best days, and such must disappear before she be ter- 
rible to her enemies " as an army with banners." 

In the day of conflict what combatant thinks of the 
polish, but of the strength and keen edge of his sword ? 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 413 



A LIFE THAT IS A LIFE. 

THE HOLY LIFE, THE HIGHER LIFE — THE HIGHER LIFE, 
THE HOLY LIFE. 

"It gives my ravisliecl soul a taste, 
And makes me for some moments feast 
With Jesus' priests and kings." 

"Be 3^e holy, for I am holy." What is it to be holy ? 
Holiness is godliness, or being like God. It is love — 
" God is love, and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in 
God, and God in him. Herein is our love made per- 
fect, that we may have JDoldness in the day of judg- 
ment. For as He is, so are we in this world." It is 
loving God with all the heart, soul, and mind, and our 
neighbor as ourselves. It is purity of thought, word, 
and action. 

" The holiness we advocate or contend for is not 
absolute or infinite. It is not the holiness that pertains 
to God or to angels, or that possessed by Adam before 
the fall, in degree. It is not absolute perfection, as 
that only belongs to God. It is not sinless perfection, 
nor even every kind of relative perfection, nor yet again 
the perfection we attain to in the resurrection. It is 
not natural, but moral perfection ; a perfection of our 
Christianity, a perfection not incompatible with many 
human infirmities, such as a dull apprehension, un- 
sound judgment, weak intellect, fertile imagination, 
treacherous memory, and the like ; and, of consequence. 



414 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

mistakes in judgment and practice. It is not a perfec- 
tion that places us beyond temptation, or the possibility 
of falling into sin, or that does not allow of progressiou 
in holiness." 

The holiness of all created intelligences is a borrowed 
holiness. The moon has no light in herself ; the liglit 
she receives is from-'the sun, the glorious king of day. 
The light we receive is from the Fountain of all light. 
The holiness we profess is Christian holiness, a holiness 
that removes all pride, covetousness, ill-temper, the feai 
of man, all desire of receiving or seeking honor one of 
another. It destroys all love of the world, extirpates 
all selfishness, removes all unbelief, dethrones every 
idol, crucifies everything that is opposed or hostile to 
the will of God. It is being crucified with Christ. 
The individual in possession of the blessing of holiness 
or perfect love can adopt the language of the apostle — • 
" Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him, 
that the body of sin might be destroyed, that hence- 
forth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is 
freed from sin." Rom. vi. 6, 7. " I am crucified with 
Christ : nevertheless I live ; yet not I, but Christ liveth 
in me : and the life which I now live in the fiesh, I live 
by the faith of the Son of God, w^ho loved me and gave 
himself for me." It is Bible holiness — a holiness that 
takes God's word for everything for time and eternity — 
a state of holiness, in which the heart that loves sin is 
taken away ; a state in which w^e neither voluntarily 
sin, nor have a desire to sin ; a condition in which w^e 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 415 

trust in Jesus to be keiptfrom sin ; and, beiag cleansed 
'' from all filthiness," we are prepared to obey the com- 
mand, " Perfecting holiness in the fear of God," as the 
more perfect the development of life, the more certain 
and rapid is its growth. 

Glance at the blessed effects of this holiness, or per- 
fect love. God enables the happy possessor of it, 
through gi'ace, to triumph over the world, the flesh, and 
the devil ; to fight the good fight of faith, to be strong 
in the Lord and in the power of His might, to be stead- 
fast, unmovable, always abounding in every good 
word and work. 

The Rev. James B. Taylor, in a letter to his sister, 
says : '' The Lord has given me povv^er over the adver- 
sary, so that, when he comes, he finds nothing in me. 
The world, with all its gUttering show, has lost its bait. 
My body is kept under, so that my enemies do not tri- 
umph over me. I have enjoyed, and do still feel, a ful- 
ness which the Lord has bestow^ed upon me. Yes; 
perfect love appears to be the ruling principle in my 
soul, so that I enjoy a little heaven to go to heaven in. 
Never, my dear sister, have I experienced so much en- 
joyment in religion as since the 23d of April last, in 
the afternoon. That is, and ever will be, a memorable 
day to me. The kingdom of God, which is peace, 
righteousness, and joy in the Holy Ghost, teas tJien, if 
ever, set up in my heart. And I have no reason to 
doubt. My experience has been so different fi^om what 
it was before, and accordant with those who enjoy the 



416 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

blessing, and with the Scriptures, that I have concluded, 
and do still believe, that my soul enjoys the blessing 
of FULL REDEMPTION. Not that I am impeccable. No, 
I may lose it through unfaithfulness. This is my 
greatest anxiety ; but I need not lose my confidence. 
' My grace is sufiicient for thee,' is enough to silence 
every fear. And Christ, the King, will perfect Hia 
strength in my weakness. My mind loves to dwell 
upon this delightful theme — holiness. It is a blessed 
doctrine. Ah ! why did I not come to possess it be- 
fore? Why? because, like many other professors of 
religion, I looked for a death purgatory, not believing 
that the hlood of Christ, and not purgatory, cleanseth 
from all sin. This is in the present tense ; it is suffi- 
cient now ; and the Lord has proved to me a full, a 
complete Saviour. But shall I stop here ? By no 
means. There is no perfection, except the absolute 
perfection of God, which does not admit of increase. 
So, then, may I forget the things behind, and press for- 
ward, and not live as though I had attained to all for 
which I am apprehended of Christ. Oh, the height 
and depth, the length and breadth, of that which re- 
mains for sanctified ones to know and enjoy ! The 
Lord has greater blessings in store for me. Alas ! that 
BO few justified ones are convinced of the necessity of a 
speedy work of sanctification of the heart, when God 
says, ' I will circumcise your hearts, and sprinkle you 
with clean water.' At this time I feel an indescribable 
peace, passing knowledge. Yet, notwithstanding it is 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 417 

indescribable, it is a blessed reality, and known only to 
those who enjoy the same. We know, from happy ex- 
perience, that there is in the love of God a height 
without a Hmit ; and oh that we may sink into that 
depth, all the depth of humble, perfect love P' 

" Oh, let me gain perfection's height ; 
Oh, let me into nothing fall, 
As less than nothing in Thy sight, 
And Christ be all in all." 



CONSULT YOUR OWN GOOD? 

To be sure you may ; it is your privilege and your 
duty. But how ? at the expense of others' good ? by 
selfishness? You defeat yourself. There is no pos- 
sible way of promoting your own welfare so certainly 
and so surely as by consulting the general good. Im- 
part good, and you receive good, pressed down, running 
over. Individuals, churches, and institutions well-nigh 
perish, starve to death by narrow-mindedness, by keep- 
ing the eye fixed exclusively on their own things, and 
not obeying God in looking also upon the things of 
others. " Cast thy bread upon the waters, for thou 
shalt find it after many days." " Freely ye have re- 
ceived, freely give." ^^ Give, and it shall be given you ; 
good measure, pressed down, running over." The only 
sure way of receiving good is by imparting good, by 
being liberal, open-hearted, generous, diffusive in heart 
and life — by manifesting a noble, generous, whole- 
souled benevolence. 



418 THE SWORD THAT CUTS 



THE LIFE OF LIVES, THE HOLY LIFE. 

THE BLESSEDNESS OF THIS HOLY FIRE — FIRE ON FIRE — 
FURTHER DEJLINEATED. 

" 'Tis not a cause of small import 
A holy life demands, 
But what might fill an angel's heart, 
And filled the Saviour's hands." 

Holiness is light, spiritual liglit. " God is light, and 
in him is no darkness at all." '' If we walk in the hs^hi 
as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with 
another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleans- 
eth us from all sin." 1 John, i. 7. Nothing so en- 
lightens, invigorates, and thrills with ecstatic joy the 
whole being, as the purifying power of the Holy Spirit. 
The moment the follower of Jesus receives the pente- 
costal baptism, that moment new light dawns like the 
noonday sun ! He sees with new eyes, hears with new 
ears, rejoices with new joy. "Behold, all things are 
become new." He is now prepared, as never hitherto, 
to face the enemy, " fight the good fight," and storm the 
fort of Satan. The fresh impetus given to the soul on 
the reception of this superlative grace is marvellous. 

This was true of Isaiah, w^hen the live coal from 
God's altar was applied to his lips, and his iniquity 
taken away and his sins purged. Then when the call was 
made for help on the battle-field, Isaiah could say, with 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 419 

a hearty good-will, '' Here am I, send me." (See Isaiah, 
vi. 1-8.) 

Holiness is both Kght and power. It was so under 
the old dispensation, it is so under the new. It is so 
noWy it will be so forever. Glory to Father, Son, and 
Holy Spirit ! New^ light and strength are received ! 
The change is wonderful ! Previous to these sealing, 
sanctifying influences of the Holy Spirit, the Bible (to 
many) is comparatively a sealed book; but now the 
light shines brightly. The Scriptures open with new 
beauty and grandeur ; wondrous things appear out of 
God's law. 

The individual receiving the witness of entire sancti- 
fication, exclaims with the Psalmist, jojrfully, " Oh hovv^ 
I love thy law ! it is my meditation all the day. I have 
more understanding than all my teachers, for thy testi- 
monies are my meditation. How sweet are thy words 
to my taste ! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth." 

The Bible becomes a new book. A Congregational 
minister, after embracing the doctrine of perfect love, 
remarks thus : " It seems to me that I obtain a clearer 
knowledge of more Scripture in one day than I could 
before in a month. And then, what a conviction of 
tridh ! The Bible, oh how inestimably precious ! It is 
my meditation day and night. How full it is ! It 
meets my every want, answers all my difficulties, solves 
all my perplexities." 

How w^as it with the primitive disciples previously 
to the Pentecostal baptism ? They were bhnd, igno- 



±20 THE SWORD THAT CUTS I 

rant, timid, fearful, doubtful. The way of salvation to 
them was obscure. They saw men as trees walking. 
How was it after Pentecost, when the tongue of fire 
was given ? Darkness disappeared, and light, and 
hope, and joy burst forth. The Holy Spirit now took 
of the things that belonged to Christ and showed them 
to the disciples. They now went forth with renewed 
boldness, like a strong man armed. One could chase 
a thousand, and tAvo put ten thousand to flight ! The 
precious teachings of Christ came home with redoubled 
light and power. The way of salvation, through 
Christ's mediation and sacrifice, shone brightly. '* Ho- 
liness to the Lord," was written on their banners. 
Very manj^, previously to this special unction from on 
high, could see no passages bearing directly on this 
subject of entire sanctification ; but on the reception 
of this Gospel fulness, almost every page was radiant 
with the blessed doctrine ! Proof-texts on proof-texts 
loomed up brightly. " Now with open face they be- 
hold as in a glass the glory of the Lord, and are 
changed into the same image, from glory to glory, 
even as by the Spirit of the Lord." Oh, ivliat a bless- 
ing, ivhat a blessing! 

Furthermore, God graciously answers the prayers of 
those embracing heartily this full salvation. Ministers, 
that toiled for years without any visible success attend- 
ing their labors, on the application of this burning 
coal went forth with renew^ed strength of purpose, 
faith, and zeal. God very soon literally poured out His 



THE FIRE THAT BURN&. 421 

Spirit, and multitudes of sinners rushed to His altar, 
crying out, " Lord, save ; we perisli." Their prayers 
were answered, almost miraculously, in the conversion 
of their fiiends and neighbors. God set his seal of ap- 
probation to this inner life. 

Individuals in the higher Christian walks, baptized 
pentecostally, given up entirely to God's service, are 
always ready to every good word and work ; ready for 
prayer, praise, testimony. When called on to pray, 
they pray ; to sing, they sing ; to speak, they speak as 
God gives utterance ; to do this or that duty, in the 
house of God and out of it, at home or abroad, there 
are no flinchings, hesitatings, or misgivings. They are 
on the spot with armor girt and burnished, hearts duly 
prepared. Their weapons are not carnal, but spiritual ; 
^' mighty through God to the pulling down of strong- 
holds." 

They endure hardness as good soldiers, stand boldly 
in the battle's front, meet Satan's hottest cannonadings, 
the fiery darts of the enemy. Never does the sancti- 
fied soul, once on the rock Christ Jesus, rooted and 
grounded in love, full of faith and the Holy Spirit, 
shrink from duty the most arduous, difficult, seK- 
denying, soul-trying. " Go forward," is his motto, " Go 
forward :" " Stand for Jesus," is the watchword, " Stand 
for Jesus'— JigJit, conquest or death. The constant 
uplifted voice is, " Lord, what wilt thou have me do ? 
Here I am, send me." It's meat, it's drink to the sanc- 
tified soul to do God's will, and oi^Iy God's will, cheer- 



422 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

fully, heartily, peacefully, joyfully, without a murmuring, 
disbelieving thought. 

"We might fill volumes delineating facts that holiness 
is power. It is so : heaven ordains it. Beloved, why 
tarry a moment? '' Come out from the world ; be sep- 
arate, and touch not the unclean thing." " Go, wash 
and be clean." " An highway shall be there, and a wslj, 
and it shall be called The way of holiness ; the unclean 
shall not pass over it ; but it shall be for those : the 
wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein," 
Isaiah, xxxv. 8. 

" Wake up, brother ! wake up, sister ! 
Seek, oh seek, this holy state ; 
None but holy ones can enter 
Through the pure celestial gate." 



Bo not confound angelic with Christian perfection. 
Uninterrupted transports of praise, and ceaseless rap- 
tures of joy, do not belong to Christian, but to angelic 
perfection. If God indulges you with ecstasies and 
extraordinary revelations, be thankful for them ; be 
not exalted above measure by them, and remember 
that your Christian perfection does not consist so much 
in building a tabernacle upon Mount Tabor, and enjoy- 
ing rare sights there, as in resolutely taking up the 
cross, and following Christ to the palace of a proud 
Caiajohas, to the judgment-hall of an unjust Pilate, and 
to the top of an ignominious Calvary. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 423 

THE TONGUE OF FIRE. 

" He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire.'''' — Matt. iii. 13. 

*' Oh for the living flame, 

From His own altar brought, 
To touch om' lips, oui' souls inspire, 
And wing to heaven our thought." 

What the effects of this fire from heaven anciently ? 
What did it do for the apostles and early disciples, 
when it was poured out on the day of Pentecost ? 

1. It opened their understanding to understand the 
Scriptures in a new light, to behold wondrous things 
out of the law and Gospel. 

2. It strengthened and invigorated their memories, 
brought home vividly and forcibly to their recollection 
"things new and old." Passages from the Old Testa- 
ment Scriptures came before the mind's eye with re- 
newed and special clearness and power. This is evi- 
dent fi'om the many quotations of Stephen, Peter, Paul, 
James, and John, in their appeals to the people after 
they had this holy unction, this new spiritual impulse — 
the tongue of fire. 

3. The Holy Spirit now took of the things of Christ 
and showed them unto them. They saw the way of sal- 
vation through the mediation of Christ, His sufferings, 
death, resurrection, and intercession, and that there 
was "none other name given under heaven, among 
men, whereby we must be saved." Acts^ iv. 12. They 



424 THE SWOJ^D THAT CUTS : 

Baw with new eyes, and heard with new ears these 
glowing truths, this " new and living way" of mercy, 
the redemption from all sin through the blood of the 
new and everlasting covenant, and rejoiced with joy 
unspeakable and full of glory. It was now plain to 
their delighted vision that all the law and the prophets 
were fulfilled in this one atoning sacrifice. 

4. Their grovelling ideas of an earthly or temporal 
kingdom vanished forever. They saw now, clearly, that 
Christ's kingdom was not of this world, but a spiritual 
kingdom, as much above all earthly grandeur and 
glory as the heavens are higher than the earth. 

5. Their faith and hopes were increased powerfully. 

6. This glorious, pentecostal baptism removed entire- 
ly and forever their remaining selfishness, pride of 
emulation, their former spirit of rivalship and ambition, 
their preconceived notions about who should be great- 
est. They were now willing to sit at the feet of Jesus 
like little children, take the lowest seat, and learn les- 
sons of humility, meekness, and love. 

7. This pentecostal shower increased their moral 
courage, their holy boldness. Previously to the recep- 
tion of this renovating, sanctifying process, they were 
timorous, fearful, man-fearing. They shrank from dan- 
ger, from facing the enemy, standing boldly for Jesus. 
This is manifest from their behavior. When Jesus was 
taken by the multitude, with swords and staves, from 
the chief priests and elders, with the traitor Judas at 
their head, " all the disciples forsook Him and fled.'' 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 425 

This fear of man, lack of holy boldness, is still more 
discernible in Peter's denying his Lord, when confront- 
ed by a damsel or maid-seryant. Mark the change in 
Peter after receiving the tongue of fire, standing before 
the multitude, many of whom were the sworn enemies 
of Jesus, and preaching with such power from heaven 
that three thousand were converted under one sermon. 
Glory to God for this unspeakable gift ! Oh for this 
virtue, this holy boldness, this fire pentecostal, in the 
ministry of the nineteenth century, constraining them 
to " cry aloud and spare not !" "What a shaking there 
would be among the dry bones in all the churches ! 

8. This baptismal power destroyed or killed out the 
fear of man that bringeth a snare, a time-serving dis- 
position to bow to popular conservative views — the doc- 
trine of expediency so prevalent in our day, and which 
has always proved a curse to the Church and the world. 
It took away also the fear of death. Henceforth they 
counted not their lives dear unto themselves. " They 
died daily;" "they Avere counted as sheep for the 
slaughter." They were crucified to the world, and the 
world to them. 

9. Another glorious thing was accomphshed by this 
overpowering influence upon the souls of the early dis- 
ciples. It killed out and destroyed entbely every wish, 
desire, and disposition for that serpent of all seipents 
— schism, party spirit, sectarianism ; this saying, " I 
am of Paul, I of ApoUos, I of Cephas," which has been 
a stumbling-block to the world from time immemorial. 



426 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

Behold the blessed effects of Christian union : " And 
they continuing daily with one accord in the Te:piple, 
and breaking of bread from house to house, did eat 
their bread with gladness and singleness of heart, 
praising God, and having favor with all the people. 
And the Lord added to the Church daily such as 
should be saved." Acts, ii. 46, 47. And so it would 
have been to the end of time, had not Satan been permit- 
ted to come in, with his infernal stratagems, and mar 
the peace of Jerusalem, split up God's people into 
shreds and parties, till our world is well-nigh an Acel- 
dama — a field of blood ! " Woe to the world because 
of offences, and woe to that man by whom the offence 

Cometh !" 

" Let party names no more 

The Christian woiid o'erspread, 
For Jew and Gentile, bond and free, 
Are one in Christ their head." 

10. Again, this baptism destroyed all love of the 
world, and the things of the world, all desire of filthy 
lucre — the spirit of hoarding. The all-absorbing idea 
now was to lay up treasure in heaven, to glorify God in 
the salvation of souls. " They sold their possessions 
and goods, and parted them to all men as every man 
had need." Acts, ii. 45. They laid all upon the altar 
Christ Jesus, brought all the tithes mto the storehouse, 
'^Holiness to the Lord" was written upon their fore- 
heads, on their door-posts, and on their gates. 

11. Finally, look at the effects of this sup eraboun ding 
gi:ace touching their labors at home and abroad. They 



THE FIBE THAT BURNS. 427 

went everywhere preaching the word, equipped for the 
battle-field. In a very little space they turned the 
world upside down, caused Satan to fall as lightning, 
mountains to flow down " as when the melting fire 
burneth." Turn to the Acts of the Apostles. How 
readest thou ? 

We draw no practical inferences from the foregoing. 
A word to the wise is sufficient. It is all practical, 
from first to last ; glory, glory, joy unspeakable, and 
full of glory ! 

" Oh, Spirit of the living God, 

Give tongues of fire and hearts of love, 

To preach the reconciled word ; 

Give power and unction from above, 

Where'er the joyful sound is heard." 



FASHIONABLE PARTIES. 

1. Look at their expensiveness. Many families ex- 
pend more at a single party than they give to the cause 
of missions in five years. 

2. Their tendency to pride and selfishness. Humili- 
ty is an essential Christian grace ; but do fashionable 
parties tend in the least to promote it ? The very re- 
verse is the fact. 

3. They produce animosities among Christians. 

4. They grieve the Holy Spirit. *' Grieve not the 
Holy Spirit of God." What is more directly calculated 
tg effect this than fashionable amusements ? 



428 THE SWOED THAT CUTS : 



THE HIGHER LIFE, THE ENTIRE LIFE. 

" Thus strong in our Redeemer's strength, 
Sm, death, and hell we trample down, 
Fight the good fight, and win, at length. 
Through mercy an immortal crown." 

Talk about it, pray about it, preach about it, write 
about it ; breathe it out, live it out, act it out, sing it 
out, shout it out ! Every look, thought, word, action, 
every moving muscle, should witness for this glorious, 
overpowering Gospel salvation; our time, talents, 
property, influence — all that we are in body, soul, and 
mind ; the first thing rising up, the first and last lying 
down, the first going out, the first coming in. '' Holi- 
ness to the Lord" should be written on our foreheads, 
door-posts, " the bells of the horses." " Tea, every pot 
in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be hohness unto the 
Lord." Zeck xiv. 21. 

The very thought of being saved from sin in this life, 
through the blood of the Lamb, should fill us with ec- 
stasy, joy unspeakable ; cause us to shout hallelujah, 
glory to God in the highest ! All heaven is in jubilee 
at the mere name of holiness. The heavenly host rest 
not day nor night, saying, " Holy, holy, holy Lord God 
Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come." Bev, 
iv. 8. Holiness is the only thing that makes us like 
God. Nothing short of this can remove the curse of 
the fall, heal our spiritual maladies, restore the Eden 
lost. President Edwards sajs : " It was a part of God's 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 429 

original design in tlie work of redemption to destroy 
the works of the devil and confound him in all his pur- 
poses. ' For this purpose was the Son of God mani- 
fested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.' 
1 John^ iii. 8. It was part of His design to triumph 
over sin, and over the corruptions of men, and to root 
them out of the hearts of HKs people by conforming 
them to Himself. He designed also that His grace 
should triumph over man's guilt, and sin's infinite de- 
merit." 

Friends of truth and love, will you not advocate this 
blessed doctrine of the Bible, publish it, sound it out 
to the ends of the earth ; pray for it, beseech God to 
perfect holiness in your own souls and in the souls of 
His people, that the earth may " blossom as the rose ?" 
— hold it up in all its clearness, fulness, freeness, 
gloriousness, preciousness, mighteousness ? — enforce 
it in the pulpit, in the prayer and conference meeting, 
at home and abroad, everywhere ? 

" Rise to a higher, holier life, 
Ye who are called the sons of God 
And girded with the Spmt's sword, 
Go nobly to the strife." 



Eeader, do you wish for a clear mind, strong muscles, 
quiet nerves, long hfe, power and energy in old age ? 
Be diligent, eat simple nutritious food, and avoid all 
drinks but water; shun tea, coffee, tobacco, opium — 
everything that disturbs the normal state of the system. 



430 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 



SPECIAL LEADINGS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. 

'' So listen to the voice within, 

That its least whisper may be heard ; 
For though it be a still, small voice, 
It speaks full many a word." 

'' But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the 
law." GaL v. 18. " If we live in the Spirit, let us also 
walk in the Spirit." Gal, v. 25. Header, are you led 
by the Holy Spirit in all you think, say, and do ? Do 
you pray in the Spirit — pray as the Holy Spirit leads 
you ? The prayers recorded in the Psalms, and in other 
portions of the Bible, were dictated by the Holy Spirit. 
The prayers of Moses, Hezekiah, David, and Solomon 
were of the Holy Spirit's dictation. Our prayers are 
not inspired in the same sense as the prayers of the 
holy men who spake as they were moved by the Holy 
Spirit ; yet no one can pray acceptably, unless the 
Holy Spirit assists him. " Likewise the Spirit also 
helpeth our infirmities ; for we know not what we 
should pray for as we ought ; but the Spirit itself mak- 
eth intercession for us, with groanings which cannot 
be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts, knoweth 
what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh in- 
tercession for the saints according to the will of (5-od." 
Rom, viii. 26, 27. 

As we cannot pray as we ought acceptably without 
the Holy Spirit's influence, neither can we preach as 
we ought without this heavenly guide, the enlightener, 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 431 

sanctifier, and purifier. Preaching not influenced by 
the Holy One is not the preaching demanded. God 
may bless His OAvn word proceeding from unsanctified 
lips, as he has done, more or less, in all ages ; but the 
preaching to meet the wants of the age, the smiling 
approbation of Him who says, '' Go, preach my Gos- 
pel," must be quick and powerful, sharper than any two- 
edged sword— proceed from holy hearts, influenced by 
wisdom from on high. Our witnessing for Jesus in 
meetings for religious worship, declaring what great 
things the Lord hath done for our souls, must proceed 
from the movings of the Holy Spirit, the source of light, 
life, and power, else all our testimonies will be dry and 
formal, sparks of our own kindling. Our conversation 
at all times, to be profitable, edifjdng, administering 
grace to the hearers, must proceed from a heart influ- 
enced by the Infinite One, the Pure, the Holy, the ever 
Blessed. 

Eeader, do you, when about to open your lips, lift 
your eyes to the hills, whence cometh your help, for 
wisdom to guide you in your conversation, in your fam- 
ily, in the social circle, around your table, spread with 
heaven's bounties, morning, noon, and evening, at home 
and abroad, everyivhere — that the words of your mouth 
and the meditations of your heart may be acceptable 
to God, and a blessing to those who hear ? Were peo- 
ple generally thus influenced by the Holy Spirit, and 
would set a watch at the door of their lips, seldom, if 
ever, should we hear words to no profit, idle, insipid, 



432 TPIE bWORD THAT CUTS : 

commonplace cliit-cliat, foolish talking, or jesting. 
" If a man offend not in word, the same is a perfect 
man, able also to bridle the whole body." 

Beloved, in your daily occupations how is it ? Are 
yon led by the blessed Comforter and sure Guide ? 
In all your business transactions, in the market-place, 
the mechanic's shop, behind the counter, at the clerk's 
desk, at the doctor's and lawyer's offices, in buying and 
selling, in everything pertaining to things secular or 
temporal, are you led by the Holy Spirit, the law and 
the testimony? In forming connections, matrimonial 
or otherwise, are you governed or led entirely by this 
heavenly dove, the light and the life ? If not, where is 
safety, where is hope, salvation? Shipwreck is inevi- 
table. 

How can two walk together except they agree ? "A 
house divided against itself cannot stand." What com- 
munion can light have with darkness? In selecting 
books and periodicals for your own and family reading, 
are you led by the Holy Spirit? If not, a curse is 
sure to follow, and not a blessing. In writing for the 
press, or epistles to your friends, is the Holy Spirit 
your guide? Is your pen made the pen of a ready 
writer by this holy leading ? 

Again, in training your household, dear reader, is 
God, the Holy Spirit, your leader ? If so, your little 
ones will be all you can wish, '' olive-plants around 
your table," angels of mercy, sweet and lovely as 
heaven can make them — else, wrath upon wrath ! 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 433 

" Christians, the task is left for you, 
The voice of mercy calls, * Awake I' 
Ten. thousand ruined homes in woe. 
Resound the words, ' Awake, awake !' " 



REMARKS. 

1. We see from tliis subject why there is so little 
effectual, fervent, prevailing prayer — why there is so 
much prayer, called prayer, that is not prayer. 

*' How many useless prayers we say. 
Because our lives our prayers belie ; 
Because devotion dies away, 
As on the air the echoes die !" 

2. We see why there is so much preaching that is 
superficial, soulless, powerless, without holy unction; 
why there is so much of man's wisdom in sermonizing, 
and so little of Christ— so much of the dull, prosy, 
reading and mock gesticulation, and so little of the 
flint, fire, and hammer of God's word, the thunderings 
and flashings of Sinai against all sin — sins popular and 
unpopular, sins of the flesh and of the spirit ; why 
there is so much of the man-fearing and time-serving, 
and so little of the crying aloud and sparing not. The 
Holy Spirit is not in it, the baptismal, pentecostal, the 
tongue of fire ! 

3. We perceive why so many of our publications are 
a curse instead of a blessing, full of froth and fiction, 
and so little of the soHd, the pure, the soul-saving. 
Would editors advertise and puff novels, romances, 

19 



434 THE SWOED THAT CUTS : 

silly, nonsensical reading — tlie Godeys, Leslies, Har- 
pers, Petersons, Ledgers, Mercurys, and foolish comi- 
cals — that are cursing the world, destroying the life 
and soul of Gospel purity — if they were led by the Holy 
Spirit ? Never ; it is the work of Satan, not of the 
Holy Spirit's leadings. 

4. Would writers for the religious press write as they 
do, with so little energy and soul-kindling, so little of 
the i»^rrow and fatness of the Gospel, and so much 
that is sickly, sentimental, commonplace, if the Holy 
Spirit influenced them ? " By their fruits ye shall 
know them." 

5. In forming connections, firms for business trans- 
actions and matrimonial alliances, that lead to apos- 
tasy, the denying of the Lord Jesus, how is it ? If the 
individuals thus uniting were solely under the guidance 
of the blessed Holy Spirit, would they ever yield thus 
to Satan's temptations in these copartnerships ? 

6. If God's professed people were led by the Holy 
Spirit in their conversation, should we hear so many 
loose and unguarded expressions, so many trifling and 
nonsensical things flow from their lips, so much mur- 
muring and complaining, bitter envyings and strife ? 
'' This wisdom, surely, is not from above, but beneath, 
earthly, sensual, and devilish." 

7. If the Holy Spirit guided men in their secular 
business at all times, should we see so much cheating 
and defrauding, so many false weights and measures, 
so much jewing and screwing, so much vowing and 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 435 

paying not ? "Were the Holy Spirit to lead here, the 
Saviour's golden rale would always be the rule. Every 
man would look not on his own things merely, but also 
on the things of others.* Justice and judgment would 
sit on the throne of every heart. 

8. We see why there is so much evil in the world, so 
many dry bones in the Church, so many withered 
branches. " If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth 
as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them 
and cast them into the fire, and they are burned." 
John, XV. 6. 

9. V/e see why so many children of pious parents 
and of others grow up in sin, conscience-seared, harder 
than the nether millstone, fuel for hell-fire. Parents 
have not obeyed God in the leadings of the Holy 
Spirit, in training them " in the way they should go." 

10. We see how the world is to be saved, made to 
blossom as the rose — we must pray in the Spirit, preach 
in the Spirit, exhort and testify in the Spirit, converse, 
read, and write in the Spirit, train our households in 
the Spirit. The Holy Spirit must take the lead in our 
prayers, preaching, speaking, writing, singing, giving 
thanks — in all we think, say, or do, whether we eat, 
drink, or whatever our hands are engaged in, special 
reference must be had to the guidance of the Holy 

Spirit. 

*' Come, Holy Spiiit, breathe that peace 
Which flows from pardoned sin ; 
Then shall thy soul her conflict cease, 
And find a heaven within." 



436 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

11. We see, or ought to see, tlie only way to be led 
by the Spirit of God is to yield ourselves implicitly to 
His holy influences, have no wills of our own. The 
Holy Spirit's leadings are on one condition — entire 
consecration of all the powers of our being, spirit, soul, 
and body, to God's service. 

12. Once more : no one is safe, or has a sure hope of 
heaven and of glory eternal, unless he is led by the 
Spirit, as indicated in this article. We are commanded 
to " be filled with the Spirit ;" and if we are filled with 
the Spirit, we shall surely be led by the Spirit. " As 
many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the 
sons of God." No others are the sons of God. " If 
any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of 
his." "This I say, then, walk in the Spirit, and ye 
shall not fulfil the lust of. the flesh." Gal v. 16. '' If 
we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit." 
*^ The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long- 
suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, tem- 
perance : against such there is no law. And they 
that are Christ's have crucified the fiesh with the affec- 
tions and lusts." Gal v. 22-24. 

12. Finally, we see the dangerous state of backsliders 
and apostates, the unregenerate and openly rebellious. 
Unconverted sinners are convicted by the Holy Spirit ; 
meanwhile, they resist His influence, saying, " Go thy 
way for this time," till given up to their own destruc- 
tion. 



THE FIEE THAT BURNS. 437 



THERE IS DANGER, THERE IS SAFETY. 

Safety on the one hand, danger on the other. The 
Lord speaks it, thunders it, jflashes it with lightning's 
flash ! He points out the danger in His word, in His 
providence, and by the Sphit's warning — gives line 
upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there 
a little, from Genesis to Revelation. 

" Awake ! why sleepest thou, my soul ? 
All nature cries. Awake !" 

Danger ? At every step ! No safety here, none 
there, save on consecrated ground, full of faith, the 
Holy Spirit, humble trust in God, prayer, watchfulness, 
seK-denial, unremitting activity in deeds merciful, gra- 
cious, persevering to the end. 

No matter how active, faithful. God-fearing we may 
have been, how successful in labors of love, are our 
souls on fire now ? We may have " turned many to 
righteousness ;" multitudes on multitudes from dark- 
ness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God ; 
fought manfully the battles of the Lord on the right 
and on the left, year after year ; stormed the fort of 
Satan, carried the warfare into the very. heart of the 
enemy's country ; our names may have gone abroad, 
far and'^near, as sons of thunder, giants in holiness ; 
we may have, like Apollos, been mighty in the Scrip- 
tures, eloquent as Paul, been caught up to the third 
heaven and heard things unspeakable ; we may have 



438 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

had the faith of Abraham, the meekness of Moses, the 
prevailing prayer of Jacob, Joshua, Ehjah, EHsha, and 
Daniel ; we may have had the visions of Isaiah, who 
saw the Lord enthroned, and surrounded with angelic 
hosts, who cried, " Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God of 
hosts," and to whose lips a live coal from God's altar 
was applied to indicate that his sins were purged and 
his iniquity taken away — but how is it noio ? Are we 
sitting at the feet of Jesus noia ? 

Moreover, we may have had the zeal of John the 
Baptist, of Paul the apostle ; we may have received the 
baptism pentecostal, the tongue of fire, the power of 
working miracles, of healing the sick, raising the dead, 
casting out devils, faith so as to remove mountains — 
but have we the faith that works by love and purifies 
the heart now ? 

In a word, we may have had opened to our ecstatic 
view the glorious manifestations and communications 
of the Bevelator in the Apocalypse ; we may have com- 
prehended, with all saints, what is the breadth, and 
length, and depth, and height, and known the love 
of God which passeth knowledge, being filled with all 
the fulness of God ; we may have been able to speak 
with the tongues of men and of angels, have had the 
gift of prophecy, enjoyed all the fruits of the Spirit, 
love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, 
faith, meekness, temperance, against which there is no 
law — but where is safety, save in Christ, now and 
henceforth ? 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 439 

" Virtue has not a shrine so pure, 
So holy, but the serpent sin, 
In hours we deem the most secure, 
Beneath its altar will glide iu." 

Safety ? Where, save in God, in Christ, in newness 
of hfe, in the Spirit of all grace, " praying always with 
all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, watching 
thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all 
saints?" There is no safety, no well-established hope 
of glory everlasting, save in following on to know the 
Lord, giving all diligence, adding to our faith, virtue, 
knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly- 
kindness, charity. There is no safety, no well-grounded 
hope of a seat at the right hand of the Bang of kings 
and Lord of lords, except on the wing of deeds merci- 
ful, benevolent, Christ-like, forgetting the things behind 
us, and reaching forth to those before us, pressing 
toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of 
God in Christ Jesus, having our robes washed in the 
blood of the Lamb. 

There is no safety, save in a godly walk and conver- 
sation, a meek, humble, loving, Christ-like spirit, doing 
justice, loving mercy, walking humbly in all the ordi- 
nances and commandments of the Lord blameless — 
save in doing whatsoever things are true, honest, just, 
pure, lovely, and of good report, mounting up as on 
eagle's wings heavenward. 

There is safety only at the feet of Jesus, like Mary, 
learning new lessons of meek, modest humility, till we 



440 THE SWORD THAT CUTS I 

can say with Paul, " I have fought a good fight, I have 
finished my course, I have kept the faith. Henceforth 
there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which 
the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me at that 
day ; and not to me only, but unto all them also that 
love his appearing." 2 Tim. iv. 7, 8. 

Finally, brethren, " Be sober, be vigilant, because 
your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh 
about seeking whom he may devour ; whom resist, 
steadfast in the faith." 1 Pet, v. 8, 9. 

" Be sober, be sober, and watch unto prayer, 
For Satan surrounds thee with many a snare. 
His vigils are constant — awake, oh awake 1 
Thy God and thy duty, oh never forsake ! 
Gird on the whole armor, prepare for the fight. 
What thine hand finds to/lo, quickly do with thy might, 
For perchance thou art hastening fast to the grave, 
Where no thoughts are cherished, no good can be craved." 

" Wherefore, let him that thinketh he standeth, take 
heed lest he fall." " Let us labor, therefore, to enter 
into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example 
of unbelief." " He that overcometh shall inherit all 
things : and I will be his God, and he shall be my son." 

"Oh watch, and fight, and pray ; 
The battle ne^er give o'er ; 
Renew it boldly every day. 
And help divine implore. 

" Ne'er think the victory won, 
Nor laj^ thy armor down ; 
Thy arduous work will not be done, 
Till thou obtain thy crown." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 441 




SOWING GOOD SEED. 

" Sow in the mom thy seed, 
At eve hold not thy hand ; 
To doubt and fear give thou no heed, 
Broadcast it o'er the land. 

" Thou canst not toil in vain ; 
Cold, heat, and moist, and diy, 
Shall foster and ma tare the grain 
For garners in the sky." 

Sow the good seed here, sow the good seed there ; 
get your soul full of it — on fire ! Preach this, preach 
that, preach here, preach there, preach everywhere. 
Preach at home, abroad, by precept, by example, by 
your daily walk and conversation. Let your lips 
preach, your tongue, the v^^ords of your mouth, " the 
meditations of your heart," your thoughts, words, ac- 
tions, every moving muscle. 

Preach by writing ; let all your communications 
preach — epistolary or for the press. Preach with your 
pen, with energy, life, power, with the Holy Spirit's 
dictation. Let your pen be "the pen of a ready 
writer." Let the fire of the Gospel breathe in every 
article, every line, life-giving, soul-kindling, 

19^ 



442 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

Preach in your visitations from house to house, to 
the poor, the afflicted, to those on beds of languishment 
and disease, pour in the oil and wine of consolation, 
visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, point 
them to the Lamb of God who taketh away the sins of 
the world. Preach by comforting the feeble-minded, 
supporting the w^eak, by being patient toward all men, 
by rejoicing with those that do rejoice, and weeping 
wdth those that weep. Preach by the distribution of 
books, tracts, and periodicals, that are Bible reforma- 
tory, that breathe the life and power of the Gospel — 
the fire pentecostal. " Is not my word like as a fire ? 
saith the Lord, and Uke a hammer that breaketh the 
rock in pieces ? What is the chaff to the wheat ? saith 
the Lord." Jer, xxiii. 29. Preach through the medium 
of books and tracts, sow the good seed by the wayside, 
in the street, in workshops and manufactories, lanes 
and alleys, by-ways and highways, in every house in 
the city and out of it ; in the cellars, in the garrets, in 
the parlors, among the rich, the poor, the bond, the 
free. Preach by these winged messengers in steam- 
boats, stages, and rail-cars, let them fly the earth 
around on the wings of the wind. 

*' In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening 
withhold not thy hand ; for thou know^est not whether 
shall prosper, either this or that, or w^hether they both 
shall be alike good." 

*' Cast thy bread upon the waters, for thou shalt find 
it after many days." Some seeds, doubtless, will fall 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 443 

by the wayside, some on stony places, some among 
thorns, but other into good ground. Our business is to 
sow, and keep sowing broadcast — scatter the good seed ; 
the Lord wdll take care of the germination, the growth, 
and the crop : leave the results wdth Him. Paul may 
plant, and Apollos water, but God alone must give the 
increase. 

Preach by these angels of mercy against every sin. 
Satan uses these weapons to further his infernal pur- 
poses — scatter firebrands, arrows, and death; and let 
us turn these weapons of w^arfare of the old serpent the 
devil against himself. Never cross the threshold or 
the street unarmed. In all your journeyings, by sea 
and land, be sure to lay in an ample supply of these 
barbed arrows of salvation, sharper than any two-edged 
sword. 

Above all, forget not to pray for God's blessing, to 
make these little instrumentaUties mighty to the pull- 
ing down of strongholds ; and in the day when all 
hearts shall be disclosed, you may reap from the seed 
thus sown " even by the wayside," some thirty, some 
sixty, some a hundred fold. 

" Scatter ye seeds, and flowers will spring ; 
Strew them at broadcast o'er hill and glen ; 
Sow in your garden, and time will bring 
Bright flowers, with seeds to scatter again." 

Preach — open your heart and your lips wide for the 
Lord, keep back no part of the price. Speak out, cry 
aloud, spare no sins, greit cr small, sins of omission or 



444 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

commission, of thought, word, or deed — popular or un- 
popular — in the Church or out of it. Preach lying 
down, rising up, going out, coming in. Preach in the 
morning, at noonday, at eventide, around the family 
altar — the table spread with heaven's bounties. Preach 
to little folks and great folks — parents and children. 
Preach in the Sabbath-school, in meetings for prayer 
and praise — in the great congregation — let every breath 
be a sermon. Let your prayers, testimonies, and ex- 
hortations — all the faculties of your being, body, mind, 
and soul, preach. Preach with your monej^, every 
farthing of it — all your possessions. Place every- 
thing 3^ou have on the altar Christ Jesus for preaching 
purposes, to be used exclusively to God's glory. 

Let preaching be uppermost, the all-absorbing idea, 
the eternal unutterable purpose of your inmost soul, 
continually, wherever you are, in every place and 
society, in whatever you are engaged. Are you a mer- 
chant behind the counter or at the clerk's desk ? preach 
— speak a good word for the Master. Are you a me- 
chanic or manufacturer? preach. Ave you a printer, 
publisher, editor, doctor, or lawyer ? preach — testify 
for Jesus, provide things honest in the sight of all men. 
Are you in the market-place — doing this or doing that? 
preach — let your light shine, let it be manifest in some 
way that you are a servant of the Lord — the Lord's 
freeman. " Ye are my witnesses." Are you a shoe- 
maker, a tailor, a barber, a cobbler, a scavenger, a boot- 
black, or a chimney-sweep ? preach — let your utterance 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 445 

be on the side of purity, virtue, truth, and love. Oh ! 
preach, preach — tell everybody how good, how great, 
ho^ Avise, how merciful God is, how pitiful, compas- 
sionate, gracious. Tell everybody how Jesus left the 
realms of light and glory and visited this wretched, 
ruined, lost world, to seek and save that which was 
lost — shed His precious blood on Calvary that we 
might live, and live forever. Every word of life in the 
form of reproof, correction, or instruction from the heart 
to the heart, every act of kindness, of true benevolence, 
or mercy, is a little sermon. Who, then, may not 
preach always, everywhere? 

'' Where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." 
" Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speak- 
eth." 

Everybody should preach little sermons and great 
sermons, so long as one sin or one sinner exists. 
Preaching should be constant, perpetual, everlasting, 
" in season, out of season." Line upon line should be 
given, precept on precept — here a little and there a 
little. 

" Who hath despised the day of small things ?" 

" Why do we speak of ' a little Ihing/ 
And ' trifles light as air ?' 
Can aught be trifle which helps to bring 
One moment's joy or care ?" 

Preach repentance, faith, justification, sanctification, 
"hoHness to the Lord." Preach to parents especially, 
exhort them to obey God in household duties, in train- 



446 THE SWOBD THAT CUTS : 

ing their children in " the way they should go.'* 
Preach to husbands and wives. Tell wives to be obe- 
dient to their husbands, as it is fit in the Lord ; and 
husbands to " love their wives, and be not bitter against 
them ;" and children to obey their parents in all things ; 
servants to serve not as eye-servants, but in singleness 
of heart, as to the Lord. 

Preach to masters to be kind to their servants, doing 
justice, remembering they also have a Master in 
heaven. Preach — give yourselves wholly to it, make 
full proof of your ministry, be workmen in this holy 
service that need not to be ashamed, rightly divi- 
ding the word of truth, giving each one his portion in 
due season. " Be instant in season and out of season, 
reprove, rebuke, exhort, with all long-suffering and 
doctrine. For the time will come when they will not 
endure sound doctrine, but after their own lusts shall 
they heap to themselves teachers having itching ears." 
2 Tim, iv. 2, 3. 

Preach the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. 
" Go into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every 
creature." " Lo ! I am with you," saith the Saviour, 
" always, even to the end of the world." 

Preach in sickness and in health, in life and in death. 
Preach in life and you preach after life, when slumber- 
ing in the grave, when in glory — though dead you will 
continue to preach. 

Oh, let us so preach, so live, that being dead we may 
continue to preach, to speak and live forever and 



THE FIKE THAT BUKNS. 447 

forever. All holy men that walked uprightly, God- 
fearingly all their days, are now preaching, speaking 
for God, for glory! Friends, do you not hear some 
of them — Moses, Joshua, Samuel, Elijah, Daniel, Paul, 
Peter, James, and John, Bunyan, Baxter, "Wesley, 
Doddridge, Payson, Taylor, Fuller, Summerfield ? Do 
you not hear their sweet voices, melodiously, heavenly 
sweet ? Their lips are closed in silence, mouldering in 
the tomb, still their voices are heard, their influence 
for good distils as the dew of heaven, as rain upon the 
mown grass. Thousands on thousands yet unborn will 
rise up and call them blessed. Oh ! what a blessed 
life — a blessed death ! 

Eeader, how is your life? Are you living now so as 
to never die, to live forever and forever, like those holy 
men gone before you? Are you now living so that 
glory, honor, immortality will resound to you Avhen 
sleeping in yonder cemetery ? Are you walking conse- 
cratedly — going about doing good, imparting light, Kfe, 
and salvation? Are you setting an example of holy, 
watchful, prayerful. Gospel self-denial ? Are you dis- 
posing your time, talents, property, all to God's glory? 
Then you will live and preach forever and forever! 
Though dead,^ you will speak — speak on as eternity 
rolls on — speak for God, speak to man. 

" Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from 
henceforth : yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest 
from their labors ; and their works do follow them." 
Rev. xiv. 13. 



448 THE SWORD THAT CUTS : 

" Tongues of the dead, not lost, 
But speaking from death's frost, 
Like fiery tongues at Pentecost." 

Now, beloved reader, suppose every one naming tlie 
name of Christ were thus faithful in delivering little 
sermons, in opening his lips for Jesus, pointing sinners 
to the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the 
world — reproving, rebuking, exhorting, with all long- 
suffering and doctrine — rising up early ; how long 
would it be ere the earth blossomed as the rose ? 

Some ten, twenty, fifty, one hundred, two hundred, 
or more, snch little sermons would be preached daily 
by every true follower of Jesus ! Glorious ! Who 
next — who ? 

" Rest not — inglorious rest unnerves the man; 
Sti'uggle, 'tis God's behest ! Fill up life's little span 
With God-like deeds : it is the test — test of the high-borji soul." 



PARENTAL TEACHING. 

" A TEASPOONFUL of rum-toddy brought me to this," 
said a young man a few days before his execution ; 
and on being asked to explain himself, continued : 
'* When a child, my father was in the custom of taking 
me on his knee at dinner-time, and giving me one 
teaspoonful out of his glass ; by this means the taste 
for drink was acquired, under the influence of which I 
committed the crime for which I am now about to 
suffer." 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 449 



A DAY LOST, LOST! 

" Lose this day loitering ; 'twill be the same story 
To-morrow, and next more dilatoiy ; 
Then indecision brings its own delays. 
And days are lost lamenting over days." 

A DAY is lost, lost! FOREVER, unless light is sown — 
heavenly light — ^peace, joy, salvation ; unless some deed 
of kindness, mercy, or love is performed, something to 
make the world, hoher and happier ; unless some sad 
heart or feeble mind is comforted — some widow's heart 
made to sing for joy : else " sure a day is lost ! lost ! — a 
gem of countless price." 

The Christian niay well consider that day as lost, for 
all the purposes of a true life, in which he has done no 
good to his fellow-creatures. The page in the record 
of his earthly history, intended for the reception of 
that day's deeds of usefulness, is worse than a blank. 
Its whiteness is sullied with the dark stain of guilt, 
born of neglected duty. Could the professed disciple 
of Christ be furnished, at any stage of his earthly exist- 
ence, with a volume whose contents should accurately 
represent the performances of his past life, how many 
unwritten and blotted pages would meet his eyes ! As 
he looked through the book, leaf by leaf, how great 
would be his astonishment, how profound his mortifi- 
cation, how poignant his sense of personal criminality ! 
If the spectacle did not plunge him into despair, it 



450 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

would probably lead him to resolutions of amendment, 
and render him a wiser and a better man. 

The Sabbath-school teacher may view that Sabbath 
as a lost day in which he has not personally addressed 
his scholars on the subject of religion, and pressed its 
paramount claims upon their immediate consideration. 
He may truly call that Sabbath lost in which he has 
not held up Jesus Christ before his class, as the way, 
the truth, and the life, and delineated the plan of sal- 
vation through the blood of His atonement. 

How justly may the impenitent sinner say to himself 
each night, before he closes his eyes in slumber, "I 
have lost this day !" With him every day is lost, as far 
as the higher and better ends of his existence are con- 
cerned. But the loss of time, precious as it is, might 
perhaps be borne, did it not pave the way for the irre- 
mediable loss of something far more valuable than all 
time — the soul. 

*' Let not a day pass without its line, 
Not one without a godly deed." 

Let your hands, your feet, your ears, your eyes, your 
mouth — every part of you, every power of your being, 
be swift, energetic, in deeds of mercy. 

Be swift to do good, swift as lightning ; speed hither 
and thither on errands of mercy and salvation ; fly on 
wings of love, up-stairs, down-stairs. While others are 
swift to do evil, you be swift in God's service, flash- 
ingly. 

Go forward where duty calls. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS, 451 



FIRE IN OLD AGE. 



Too old to have fire — pentecostal fire — the tongue of 
fire ? No he is not, no matter how old he is — the older 
the better. The older he grows the more fire he should 
have, and ivill have, if faithful, redeeming the time, 
walking manfully, taking his daily cross. Why so 
many lose their fire in old age is, they have not kept 
pace with the times — striking here, striking there — firing 
here, firing there — thundering here, thundering there. 
The very instant we begin to seek to feather our -own 
nests, at the expense of a full salvation, that instant 
fire wanes, Ught recedes — the salt loses its savor. This 
is why so many ministers superannuate are laid on the 
shelf — ^become mere ciphers, dregs to the community, 
often a by-word and a hissing! Shocking! Some 
ministers and religious editors that run well for a time 
dwindle, dwindle ! sink, lower and still lower, become 
dwarfs in religion — moral pigmies, idiots in things per- 
taining to the kingdom — lose what little common sense 
they once had by yielding to a sickly charity, confer- 
ring with flesh and blood. 

" Face thou the wind. Though safer seem 
In shelter to abide, 
We were not made to sit and dream 
The safe must first be tried." 

Did the old prophets Elijah, Elisha, Isaiah, Jere- 
miah, Ezekiel, or Daniel, lose heavenly fire — fire on 



452 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

fire, as years drew on ? Did the apostles, Paul, Peter, 
James, or John ? The fire of God in their souls grew 
hotter and hotter, shone brighter and brighter as time 
rolled on. Did Paul lose a particle of the fire of salva- 
tion as he advanced in years ? It blazed out sparklmg- 
ly and increasingly, till the voice said, " Come up 
higher." Was it not so with Wesley, Whitfield, Bax- 
ter, Bunyan, and Payson ? Away with the false idea 
that the fire in our souls decreases as we draw near the 
eternal world. Glory on glory, if so be we stem the 
current; fight the good fight; keep the weapons of 
our warfare burnished brightly. 

Look at Payson, as he drew near the confines of the 
spiritual world. He bathed in an ocean of love. 
Wherefore ? He was on and on, continued on and on. 
This fire is the bread of heaven — angels' food, which 
if a man eat he shall never die. Christ says, " I am 
the living bread which came down from heaven ; if any 
man eat of this bread he shall live forever ; and the 
bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for 
the life of the world." John, vi. 51. 

" The words I speak unto you, they are spirit, and 
they are life." John, vi. 63. 

This very same Jesus is fire, fire on fire ! " But 
who may abide the day of His coming ? and who shall 
stand when He appeareth? for He is like a refiner's 
fire, and like fuller's soap." 

Beader, you perceive the Lord Jesus is holy fire — 
salvation fire. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 453 



GO AHEAD? WITH ALL YOUE MIGHT? 

First see you are riglit — on the side of virtue, truth, 
purity, mercy, love, salvation on salvation, jfire on fire, 
in the path of duty— then go ahead, strike! dash on 
through opposition, persecution, thick and thin, mud 
and mire, stormy winds, sunshine or no sunshine ; stem 
the current mid hailstones, thunderings and lightnings ! 
On, on ! to conquest or death ! Buckle on the armor ; 
fight, fight ! Stretch every nerve for God, for holiness, 
salvation, justice, mercy, and truth. Labor on, fight 
on ! " Fear thou not, for I am with thee ; be not dis- 
mayed, for I am thy God : I will strengthen thee ; yea, 
I will help thee ; yea, I will uphold thee with the right 
hand of my righteousness." Isa, xK. 10. 

" Fear not, thou worm Jacob and ye men of Israel ; 
I will help thee, saith the Llord, and thy redeemer, the 
holy one of Israel." Isa, xli. 14. 

Be in earnest, wide awake, turn* and overturn, load 
and fire J This man-expediency, compromising, is 
death, double death, death on death, damnation on 
damnation, the bane, the gangrene, the leprosy, the 
pestilence walking in darkness, the destruction at 
noonday ! It kills out — eats out the lifeblood of sal- 
vation in the Church, the ministry, editorship, semi- 
naries of learning. It's a curse to this nation, to every 
nation. The false prophets of old compromised, and it 
killed them dead ! King Saul compromised, and it 



454 THE SWORD THAT CUTS: 

killed liim dead. Good King David compromised once 

or twice — what now ? any bones broken ? Solomon 

compromised, and what the result ? The Scribes and 

Pharisees compromised, and it killed them dead! 

Judas compromised, and he went to his own place — it 

killed him deadJ Ananias and Sapphira compromised, 

and it killed them dead ! Peter compromised once or 

twice, and he wept bitterly ! This same compromising 

has been going on and on till the whole world is filled 

with compromisings and compromisers, and where are 

we now? well-nigh dead — dead and damned, in the 

Church and out of it ! 

*' Fail ! it is the word of cowards ; 
Fail ! the language of the slave : 
Firmly stand, till duty beckons ; 
Onward, then, e'en to the grave !'* 



NEVER YIELD TO DISCOURAGEMENT. 

Do not be disheartened, friends, on account of your 
slow progress. A long martyrdom is sometimes neces- 
sary to purify our souls from the concealed faults of 
self-love. The little vexations and minor miseries of 
life can only be met with patience and philosophy. 
They can't be "put down" like an insurrection, nor ex- 
pelled like a bad church-member. The best that can 
be done with them is to pay as little attention to them 
as possiblej and not to double their power by fretting 
over them. 



THE FIRE THAT BURNS. 



455 




THE WORLD ON FIRE. 

" Oh that thou wouldst rend the heavens, that thou 
wouldst come down, that the mountains might flow 
down at thy presence. As when the melting fire bum- 
eth, the fire causeth the waters to boil, to make thy 
name known to thine adversaries, that the nations may 
tremble at thy presence. When thou didst terrible 
things, which we looked not for, thou camest down, 
the mountains flowed down at thy presence." Isaiah, 

Ixiv. 1-3. 

" But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the 
night ; in the which the heavens shall pass away with 
a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent 



456 THE SWORD THAT CUTS, ETC. 

heat ; the earth also and the works that are therein 
shall be burned np. Seeuig then that all these things 
shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to 
be in all holy conversation and godliness. Wherefore, 
beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent 
that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, 
and blameless. Seeing ye know these things before, 
beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of 
the wicked, fall from your own steadfastness. But 
grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and 
Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory, both now and 
forever." 2 Pet, iii. 

" He that is unjust, let him be unjust still : and he 
which is filthy, let him be filthy still : and he that is 
righteous, let him,, be righteous still : and he that is 
holy, let him be holy still. And behold I come quickly ; 
and my reward is with me, to give every man according 
as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the be- 
ginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed 
are they that do his commandments, that they may 
have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through 
the gates into the city. For without are dogs, and 
scorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and 
idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie. I 
Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these 
things in the churches. I am the root and the off- 
spring of David, and the bright and morning star." 
Rev, xxii. 11-16. 



6^" 



